The Binghamton men’s soccer team defeated St. Bonaventure 3-1 in its home opener on Tuesday evening. After three consecutive losses on the road, the Bearcats were finally able to capture their first win of the 2023 season.

“We talked about finding the ball, in behind their full-back and I thought we did,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “That’s how we scored the first goal and perhaps maybe one of the things that we saw from training was a little more combination play in front of the backs. Perhaps the best thing that came out of today was that our competitive spirit showed for 90 minutes which was quite good.”

In the first half of the game, possession went back and forth between St. Bonaventure (1-2-1) and Binghamton (1-3-0). The first two opportunities to score came from BU in the first 10 minutes but the ball was saved by the Bonnies’ goalkeeper both times. In the moments where BU had to go on defense, they were able to prevent the Bonnies from scoring. The first half ended 0-0 with BU having four shots on goal while the Bonnies had zero.

“It was a great competitive game by both sides for us,” Marco said. “I thought our backs and mids were pretty good, and then I thought our front guys were quite good. I think we were more useful with the soccer ball today than we’ve been.”

Early into the second half, the Bearcats were able to take the lead. In the 48th minute of the game and only three minutes into the second half, redshirt senior midfielder Anthony Lazaridis found the back of the net for the first goal of the game.

“We played well in the first half,” Lazaridis said. “We just weren’t clinical, and didn’t get the finish we wanted. Then second-half we just wanted to come out be killers, do our thing, and we knew if we kept playing the way we’re playing that the goals would come and of course they did.”

The next big opportunity came in the 62nd minute when the ball went out of bounds and BU had a throw-in. The ball was found by graduate student midfielder Jack Green, who netted the game’s second score as BU took a 2-0 lead over St. Bonaventure. Three minutes after BU scored, the Bonnies scored a goal, their first of the contest, to make the score 2-1.

“Before the game, you know [Binghamton assistant head coach Tommy Moon] kept on saying if we get one we gotta get another one and we gotta keep on going and keep on pushing and that’s exactly what we did,” Green said.

In the 77th minute of the game, BU solidified their win with a goal from senior midfielder Markos Touroukis with an assist from Green. Ultimately, Green ended the match with one goal and one assist. The Bearcats were able to retain their two-goal advantage, and the game ended in a 3-1 win for Binghamton.

“I thought we played a little more soccer,” Marco said. “Bonaventure presented some good problems, and I thought our backs dealt pretty well with them. They get in behind us a couple [of] times because they’re pretty fast, [a] couple of speedy guys but no overall I’m pleased. I think we’re moving in the right direction. We just need to continue to keep coming to training and getting better.”

BU will remain home to take on Lafayette on Saturday, Sept. 9 at the Bearcats Sports Complex. Kickoff is set for 6:07 p.m. in Vestal, New York.