Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Lafayette
Lafayette Makes 4th-Minute Goal Hold Up in 1-0 Win over Bison
10/7/2015 9:43:00 PM | Men's Soccer
EASTON, Pa. – Eric West scored just 3:51 into the match, and Lafayette's Patriot League-leading defense took over from there in the Leopards' 1-0 victory over Bucknell in men's soccer action on Wednesday night. The Bison fell to 3-4-4 overall and 0-1-2 in Patriot League play, while Lafayette improved to 5-2-4, 2-0-1.
In the opening moments of the game, Lafayette's Ben Marks delivered a cross from the left side into the six-yard box. A Bucknell defender tried to one-time the clearance away but misconnected on the strike. The ball rolled right to West, who finished into the right side of the net.
Bucknell attempted 12 shots in the game, including 10 in the second half, but could not penetrate a Leopards defense that has yet to concede a goal in Patriot League play this season. Lafayette entered the game with a league-best 0.45 team goals-against average on the season and has now yielded only five goals in 11 games in 2015.
Neither team had many clear scoring opportunities after Lafayette went ahead early. Bucknell's closest chance came late in the second half, when a header from Sebastiaan Blickman skimmed off the top of the crossbar. Blickman led the Bison with three shot attempts.
“Our program has had a lot of success through the years, and one of the lessons those teams learned was that there is such a fine line between winning and losing in the Patriot League,” said head coach Brendan Nash. “Every game is so close, and all the little things matter so much. I hope this team learned that lesson tonight. We've got to dig a little deeper and regroup for Colgate on Saturday.”
Bucknell was kept off the board for only the third time all season, with the other two coming against Syracuse and Xavier, two teams that have been nationally ranked this season. Chris Thorsheim, this week's Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week, saw his three-game goal-scoring streak come to an end.
Mike Lansing was credited with five saves for Bucknell, while Brad Seeber also had five stops at the other end. Lafayette finished with a 13-12 shot advantage and snapped a two-game losing streak to the Bison.
Bucknell is back in action on Saturday at home against Colgate at 3 p.m.
