The Oswego State men’s soccer team lost to the Plattsburgh State Cardinals at home on Oct. 8.  The team had a 1-0 upper-hand in the first half, but fell apart in the second, as they ended up losing the game 2-1.

    The Cardinals dominated the first ten minutes of the game, keeping the ball on the Lakers defensive side. However, Jason Wuytack would turn on the heat for Oswego’s offense getting a shot on goal 15 minutes into the first half.  Ryan Young would then get a header from an assist from Liam Rother after a cross to put the Lakers up 1-0. Andre Bourjolly finished the half with one save as both teams played amazing defense for the rest of the half, only allowing three shots on goal total between both teams.

Plattsburgh would come into the second half unleashed, with complete control of the tempo.  

    The Cardinals scored their first goal in the 67th minute as  the ball would find its way right under Bourjolly’s legs to tie the score 1-1. Plattsburgh would score what would be the game winning goal in the 79th minute.

Both teams were undisciplined as emotions rose, as there were eight total yellow cards total in the contest. 

  Plattsburgh would dominate the contest in shots and shots on goal, with 20 shots to Oswego’s seven, and nine shots on goal to Oswego’s four.  The Cardinals would also had four times more corners than the Lakers, with 12 to Oswego’s three. The Cardinals unquestionably controlled the tempo in this game with the Lakers finding no rhythm on offense in the second half.  Bourjolly had an up-to-par outing with six saves that translated to a 67% save percentage.  

   Overall, the Lakers fall to a record of 4-6-2 on the season, with a conference record of 1-3-2.  This is definitely not the season that coach Dan Kane or the team wanted to have, sitting seventh in the SUNYAC conference. However, not all hope is lost for the Lakers, as they take on a struggling Buffalo State team on Oct. 12 in Buffalo. Buffalo State has a 1-3-1 conference record on the season, and struggle mightily on offense with only ten goals total on the season. Last year, the Lakers cleaned house with a dominating 5-2 win over the Bengals.

    The Lakers will continue their road trip on Oct. 15 as they face Oneonta State. The Red Dragons have a .500 win percentage in the conference with a 2-2-1 record but are undefeated outside of the conference with a 5-0 record.  They are a fiery hot offensive team with 24 goals in 11 games played, and also have a strong defense only allowing 11 goals this season.