The Binghamton men’s soccer team continued its 2024 season Wednesday night with a 3-0 loss against William & Mary. The Bearcats struggled in the first half, as they were unable to find the back of the net, while William & Mary managed to put three past them. The Bearcats’ offensive struggles continued in the second half, as they were held scoreless, cementing a 3-0 win for William & Mary.

“Super disappointed,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “We started the game very, very well. They came across midfield into our end probably twice in the first 15-18 minutes and have a goal. So that’s disappointing.”

Binghamton (2-1-0) quickly found themselves trailing the Tribe (1-0-0), who took a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute of play. Just two minutes later, BU nearly netted an equalizer when a shot from sophomore attacker/midfielder Marcus Nahim nearly went in, bouncing off the top of the post. The next stretch of play saw the foes trade several shot attempts, with the tally tied up at four shots a piece by minute 29.

“It’s not like we’re not getting opportunities,” Marco said. “We were getting opportunities and [William & Mary] hit the target, scored goals and we didn’t. I think that needs to be addressed at the individual level.”

William & Mary, however, was next to find the back of the net for the second time in the 30th minute, to take a 2-0 lead. The Bearcats’ woes continued late in the first half of play, as the Tribe scored its third goal of the night in the 40th minute. Binghamton was unable to string together a significant offensive performance and they were outshot 5-0 for the remainder of the period. The Bearcats went into the half facing a three goal deficit.

“I thought we started the game better today,” Marco said. “I felt like we were in control of the game. We were on top of the game, our tempo was pretty good, positioning was pretty good. If we look at the opportunities in the game, some of the opportunities we had, we just didn’t capitalize on them and they capitalized on everything they got.”

The Bearcats opened the second half with increased offensive aggression, along with an increase in possession in the opponent’s half. Graduate student midfielder Tom Cohen and redshirt sophomore midfielder Gaven Egan each had a shot on goal a piece, and Nahim attempted his third shot of the night, but the Bearcats were unable to put one between the sticks.

“Let them suffer a little bit more,” Marco said. “I felt like there were moments we really had to be a little grittier, and we weren’t great on 50/50 balls, and first and second balls. That’ll have to be a focus for us on Monday.”

BU’s offensive struggles continued late in the second half despite its continued efforts in the final third. Binghamton maintained its offensive efforts, but both of the home team’s shot attempts throughout the remainder of play went high. Despite outshooting the Tribe 4-0 in the second half, the Bearcats were unable to mount a comeback as they fell 3-0.

“Hofstra will be a good game,” Marco said. “We’ve got some days off to rest a little bit. Maybe we get some guys back by injury, but overall extremely disappointed. I did not expect that after the start of the game, I would not have expected the outcome that we got.”

Binghamton will face Hofstra University on Monday, Sept. 2. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium in Hempstead, New York.