Men's Soccer Closes 2013 Season With Road Draw

Saturday, November 9

6 pm

University at Buffalo

3-11-4 (1-4-1MAC)

Northern Illinois

4-13-1 (0-5-1MAC)

OT 3

OT 4

Buffalo

Northern Illinois

Men's Soccer Closes 2013 Season With Road Draw

11/9/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

DEKALB, IL - Trailing 2-0 after just 21 minutes in its regular season finale at Northern Illinois, the men's soccer team rallied back and were even able to take a brief lead before settling for a 3-3 tie. Freshman Russell Cicerone assisted on the team's opening goal and would eventually score the go-ahead goal in the 74th minute for Buffalo.

Despite a pair of early chances for the UB offense, it was NIU that would score first, netting two goals in under a minute. Buffalo would dominate the final eight minutes of the first half, starting with Marcus Hanson's goal in the 38th minute. After taking a pass from Cicerone, Hanson would score from the left side of the box to make it a 2-1 game. The equalizer came in the 41st minute, with Braden Scales following a rebound off a shot from Nicolai Berry. He put the carom home to send the Bulls flying into the halftime break.

The second half was a physical one for both teams, with the Bulls being whistled for 12 fouls to Northern's two. A counter attack built up in the 74th minute would allow for the visiting side to take a brief lead. Cicerone curled a perfect shot from just inside the box that would foil the goalie's best effort, giving the freshman his sixth goal of the season. The Huskies would tie the game in the 86th minute, after a corner kick led to a foul in the box.

Junior goalie Waleed Cassis would make a trio of quality saves for the final minutes of regulation and through the two ten-minute overtimes, preserving the result for UB. He would make nine saves overall on the game, marking the sixth time this season that he posted seven or more saves in a match. He finishes his first season with the team with 77 saves, cracking the top 20 for most saves in a single season in program history. Cicerone's six goals are the most by a Bull since Mike Unwin's nine in 2009.

"We started seven freshmen tonight and they all performed exceptionally well," head coach Stu Riddle said. "To come back from 2-0 down and take the lead with such a terrific goal, I thought we would win the match, but it wasn't to be and the draw was a fair result."

The Bulls finish the first season under Riddle with a 3-11-4 overall record, 1-4-1 in the Mid-American Conference. Northern Illinois finishes at 4-13-1, 0-5-1 in the MAC.