Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Men's Soccer Hosts Nationally Ranked Colgate Saturday
9/29/2006 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 29, 2006
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell men's soccer team closes out its three-game homestand with a critical contest with nationally ranked Colgate Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. at Varsity Soccer Field. The Bison and Raiders, who are ranked 24th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas Top 25 Poll, are tied for first place in the Patriot League, along with Lehigh. The Bucknell and Colgate women's soccer teams will play following the men's contest at 7 p.m. in the nightcap of a rare doubleheader.
Bucknell, which is 7-2-2 overall and 2-0-0 league play, saw its eight-game unbeaten streak snapped Wednesday night with a 1-0 non-conference loss to Princeton at Varsity Soccer Field. The Bison had won seven of their eight games during the streak and went nearly a month between losses.
Goalie Joey Kuterbach (Kingwood, Texas/Kingwood) saw his career-best scoreless streak of 363 minutes, 30 seconds, snapped when the Tigers tallied the lone goal of the game. The junior has played every second in goal this season and ranks third in the Patriot League with four shutouts, including three in a row prior to Wednesday's match. Kuterbach also has piled up a career-high 48 saves to boost his career total to 93. Through games of Sept. 24 Kuterbach ranked seventh nationally in save percentage at .885.
Alex Russo (Middletown, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy) and Nathan LaGrave (Okinawa, Japan/Kadena) have led the Bucknell offense, which is markedly improved over 2005. The Bison have scored as many goals (16) in 11 games this season as they did in 18 contests last fall. Russo leads the way with five goals and two assists for a team-high 12 assists, while LaGrave has piled up four goals and three assists in his freshman campaign. Russo ranks third in the Patriot League in points and is tied for third in goals. LaGrave stands fourth in points and is tied for sixth in goals.
Bucknell will be looking to improve to 5-1-0 on its home pitch on Saturday. The Bison own a sparkling 34-11-7 home record since the beginning of the 2000 campaign. Additionally, Bucknell will be aiming for its first 3-0-0 start in Patriot League play since 2003.
Colgate, which is the first Patriot League team to be ranked in the national poll since 2004, sports a 6-0-2 record heading into Saturday's match. The Raiders were the last team in the NCAA to allow a goal this year as they started the season on a six-game shutout streak. They have yielded just one goal all season using a goalie platoon of David Cappuccio and Doug Litvack.
Colgate, which has netted just eight goals this season, led the nation in save percentage (.969), goals against average (0.13) and shutout percentage (.86) and were 12th in won-lost-tied percentage (.857) through games of Sept. 24.
The Bison are idle for one week following Saturday's match before traveling to Easton, Pa., to take on in-state rival Lafayette next Saturday night. Bucknell will have just two more home games as its hosts NJIT Oct. 10 and Navy Oct. 28.
