The Binghamton University women’s soccer team put up two valiant efforts at the Niagara Classic, but in the end the Bearcats were bucked by the Buffalo Bulls (1-2-1) and watched the Niagara Purple Eagles soar to a late-game victory.

Buffalo (1-2-1) defeated Binghamton (0-3-1) by a score of 3-1 on Friday, and Niagara (2-2-0) bested the Bearcats 2-1 on Sunday.

After Buffalo midfielder Ashley Turner scored early in the first half Friday, the Bearcats struck back with a first half score of their own from senior forward Danielle White. The second half exploited the Bearcats’ inability to keep up with the precision passing and shooting of Buffalo’s forwards, Brooke McCalla and Andrea Vescio, who combined for a pair of goals and assists.

‘None of the goals in Friday’s game could have been put on Erin [Iman],’ said BU coach Jeff Leightman. ‘I’m disappointed in the result of Friday’s contest; we came out pretty flat and never really had a chance because of it. If we played with the kind of intensity we showed on Sunday, the results would have been different.’

Following the 3-1 loss to Buffalo, the Bearcats looked to redeem themselves versus the host Purple Eagles on Sunday. Senior midfielder Tricia Reed netted the well-placed pass she received from senior forward, Kim Povill, into the upper-right corner 14 minutes into the game to give the Bearcats an early lead.

The lead was held up for 45 minutes, in large part due to the stellar goaltending of sophomore Erin Iman, who recorded a season-high nine saves in the game. The new Bearcat keeper’s play has coach Leightman speaking high of the former Richmond Spider in her first year between the pipes for the Bearcats: ‘She made the adjustment well as a sophomore transfer in a new environment. It would be unfair to compare her to Bowers, who was a senior with four years of experience, but if you look at her in comparison to our former keepers’ freshman and sophomore years, she’s well ahead of where they were at the same age.’

After a save by Iman and a blocked kick, Niagara midfielder Caitlin Long pushed the ball through a scramble in front of the net to tie the game 1-1 in the 60th minute. Niagara’s second goal, scored by forward Stephanie Gartley, came in the 66th minute and proved to be the game winner.

Leightman said the shot totals, 15 for Binghamton and 23 for Niagara, are misleading: ‘In the first half, it was recorded as 10 shots to eight in our favor, but our attacks don’t always result in shots ‘ by scoring chances, it was more like 15-2. Niagara was the best team we have faced so far and bad luck was what kept them in the game. We tried to pad our lead but hit a few posts, while balls popped out of scrambles and seemed to find their players. It’s tough, as much as I don’t like to blame luck, sometimes the soccer gods just aren’t on your side.’

The Bearcats will head south to Florida International to finish off their six-game road trip this Thursday through Sunday. Facing the Florida International Golden Panthers (0-1-1) and the University of Miami Hurricanes (2-1-1), the Bearcats will hope to heat up with the Florida sun and record their first victory of the 2007 campaign.