COLLEGE ROUNDUP (Oct. 5): NU hosts soccer doubleheader today

Sports

October 4, 2008

By Jonah Bronstein<br><a href="mailo:bronsteinj@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Jonah</a> The Niagara Gazette Sat Oct 04, 2008, 11:05 PM EDT

Nobody’s preventing you from watching this football doubleheader today at the new Niagara Field.

At 1 p.m., Niagara’s women’s soccer team will play defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion Marist. Then, around the same time the Buffalo Bills kick off a game that presumably won’t be available on half of the town’s television sets, Niagara’s men’s team will take on the Buffalo Bulls.

“It’s always a great game when we play the local teams,” NU men’s coach Dermot McGrane said.

UB is off to a torrid start, going 10-2-1 with losses at Michigan and Michigan State, and a tie at Penn. Over their last seven games, the Bulls have outscored opponents 13-0.

The Purple Eagles are 6-2-1 and ranked fourth in the North Atlantic region after overcoming a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 at Robert Morris on Friday. Matt Durand, who ranks in the top 10 nationally in scoring, had two goals, including the game-winner in double overtime.

“Matt is having a very good season,” McGrane said. “He’s a mature player with a great deal of experience.”

Niagara goalkeeper John Fiutowski entered Friday ranked second in saves per game (2.0), then stopped nine shots against Robert Morris.

“Our style of play is to allow people to take 30- or 40-yard shots,” McGrane said. “As a coach, I’m comfortable with both of our goalkeepers (Fiutowski and Jason Whitehead) stopping long-range shots.”

By contrast, UB keeper Bobby Shuttleworth, a Tonawanda native, didn’t have to make a save in Friday’s 4-0 defeat of Western Michigan.

Both the men’s and women’s games are expected to air on tape delay tonight on LCTV.

Football

Fisher gets upset

Tenth-ranked St. John Fisher College suffered its first home loss in nearly two years, as Hartwick College defeated the Cardinals 31-28 at Growney Stadium in a key Empire 8 Conference game.

Last year, both Fisher and Hartwick shared the Empire 8 title, but the Hawks earned the automatic bid to the NCAAs, thanks to their 31-28 win.

The loss drops Fisher’s record to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the Empire 8 and snaps an 11-game home winning streak. Hartwick improves to 2-1, 1-1.

Buff State falls to 0-4

Matt Pacana (North Tonawanda) led the Bengals defense with 12 tackles in a 35-14 loss at Cortland. Jermaine Rose (Niagara Falls) had 11 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

“Our kids played hard and we were right there going into the fourth quarter, but we were forced to take some chances that didn’t pan out for us, and Cortland made the most of good field position,” Bengals coach Paul Shaffner said.

Women’s Hockey

Champs thump NU

Mary McKinnon had the lone goal for the Purple Eagles in a 6-1 loss to No. 1-ranked Minnesota-Duluth, the defending national champions. Niagara (0-2) led Friday’s opening game 2-0 after the first period, but was outscored 12-1 over the next five periods of the series.

Women’s Volleyball

Eagles swept

Freshman Michelle James had 29 assists and 17 digs as Niagara lost in three sets (25-17, 25-23, 27-25) at Fairfield. The Purple Eagles are now 3-13 overall and 1-4 in the MAAC. The Stags are 5-0 in the MAAC.

“Despite our team’s great day of serving,” Niagara coach Susan Clements said, “we were not able to stop their middle attack. They are a very solid team in this conference.”

Women’s Tennis

Seton Hall beats NU

Hilary Hansen and Alyssa Lucas won their doubles match for NU in the best-of-three series as the Purple Eagles were defeated, 7-0.

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