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Defensive Minded Bulls Head to Michigan for a Pair of Weekend Games
9/28/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
BUFFALO, NY - Buoyed by the conference's top defense, the Buffalo Bulls women's soccer team will head to Michigan this weekend for two games against Mid-American Conference foes. Friday will see a matchup with perennial power Central Michigan (7-1-2, 1-0-1 MAC) with a Sunday game against Eastern Michigan to follow.
Among the league's 12 teams, Buffalo is best in shutouts (8) and saves (64), and are tied with Central Michigan for fewest goals allowed (5). The team's eight shutouts are also the second most in the nation. Goalie Ainsley Wheldon leads all individuals in those categories as well, including the best save percentage (.923). Among all Division I teams, Wheldon ranks 12th in goals-against average (0.49) and fourth in save percentage. In the first RPI report of the season, UB ranks 86th in the nation, behind only Central Michigan among MAC members.
With both teams ranking so highly in both the conference and national scene, Friday's game holds a lot of weight. This will be the 14th meeting between the two teams, with Central holding a 8-3-2 advantage. Buffalo's last win against the Chips came in 2007, when the Bulls won a tight 1-0 contest. Kickoff on Friday will be at 4 pm and live stats can be found here.
On Sunday, the team will head south to Ypsilanti to take on Eastern Michigan at 1 pm. Despite a 0-8-1 overall record, the Eagles have had Buffalo's number recently, winning three matches and drawing even once in the last four meetings. For the all-time series, EMU is 9-4-3 against the Bulls. The offense has been its undoing, as it has scored only four goals in the first nine games while allowing 20 to its opponents. Live stats can be found here.
