Aug. 28, 2012

Patriot League Men's Soccer Release - 8.28.12

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — The men’s soccer season opened for six of the eight Patriot League teams over the weekend. Seeking a strong start to its season, defending champion Colgate posted a 3-2 overtime victory Friday over Binghamton before settling for a 1-1 draw at No. 15 St. John’s Sunday evening. Mike Reidy was named the BRINE Offensive Player of the Week after tallying Friday’s game-winner and the only marker in Sunday’s tie.

American and Army also picked up victories in their respective season-openers. Alassane Kane, the preseason pick for Offensive Player of the Year, scored twice in the Eagles’ 1-1 weekend in California, while freshman Parker Dixon scored the first goal of the season for the Black Knights in their eventual 3-0 win over Air Force.

Lafayette is the next squad to hold its season opener, as the Leopards visit Fairleigh Dickinson Tuesday evening. Holy Cross will open at home Thursday evening against NEC foe Quinnipiac.

Fifteen matches are spread out over the next week, with no more than three happening on any day.

Patriot League Notebook

• Colgate was ranked fourth and Bucknell tied for seventh in Tuesday’s NSCAA/Continental Tire Mid-Atlantic Regional top 10.

• American’s Alassane Kane was named to the Wilson Titan Classic All-Tournament Team after netting a pair of goals for the Eagles in matches against Cal State Fullerton and Cal State Northridge last weekend.

• Army improved to 14-7-3 all-time against academy rival Air Force with Saturday’s 3-0 win. In addition, it was the Black Knights’ first season-opening win since 2009.

• Bucknell was led by a pair of freshmen in its two draws over the weekend. Mike Lansing played all 220 minutes in net for the Bison, collecting BRINE Goalkeeper of the Week honors, while Jesse Klug tallied his first goal just 18 minutes into his career in Friday’s 1-1 draw at VCU.

• Navy, which opened its season with a 4-0 loss Saturday at 13th-ranked Old Dominion, plays its next three matches at home. The Mids host Robert Morris Thursday night, and won’t hit the trail again until Sept. 12 at Delaware.

• Dennis Bohn enters his 12th season as the head coach at Lafayette. He has amassed 108 victories in 11 years.

• Holy Cross will host Quinnipiac Thursday night in the season opener. It will be the first match under head coach Marco Koolman.

• Bucknell’s Brendan Burgdorf, a preseason All-League pick and a member of the Hermann Trophy Watch List, picked up an assist over the weekend.

Patriot League Weekly Awards

BRINE OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
MIKE REIDY, COLGATE Sr., M, Webster, N.Y.
Reidy was the Raiders’ prime offensive performer in helping the defending Patriot League champions open 1-0-1. He scored the overtime game-winner in Friday’s 3-2 win over Binghamton, and provided the Raiders’ only goal in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at No. 15 St. John’s. Reidy has already equaled his goal total from a season ago.

BRINE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
TOMMY JAEGER, ARMY So., D, Centennial, Colo.
Jaeger picked up the assist on Parker Dixon’s game-winning goal in the Black Knights’ impressive 3-0 win over Air Force Saturday evening. The sophomore was also instrumental defensively in keeping the Falcons off the scoresheet. Air Force won 12 matches a year ago and features several returning all-conference players in its lineup.

BRINE GOALKEEPER OF THE WEEK
WINSTON BOLDT, ARMY So., GK, St. Louis, Mo.
Boldt was strong between the posts as Army blanked Air Force 3-0 Saturday night, giving the Black Knights their first win in a season-opener in three years. He made seven saves for his second career shutout. It was Army’s first win over the Falcons since 2007.

BRINE ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
MIKE LANSING, BUCKNELL Fr., GK, Randolph, N.J.
Lansing backstopped Bucknell to a pair of 1-1 draws over the weekend at the VCU Invitational. He made nine stops in Friday’s draw against the host Rams, and added five more in another tie against Butler on Sunday. The rookie from Randolph, N.J., has a .875 save percentage and a 0.82 goals-against average through the first two matches of 2012.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
ALASSANE KANE, AMERICAN Sr., F, Macon, Ga.
Kane scored twice in the Eagles’ two weekend contests, including the game-winner in Friday’s season-opening 1-0 victory at Cal State Fullerton.

BILLY KNUTSEN, AMERICAN Jr., GK, San Francisco, Calif.
Knutsen made eight saves in American’s 1-0 shutout victory Friday at Cal State Fullerton, and finished the week 1-1-0 with 13 stops.

PARKER DIXON, ARMY Fr., M, North Ogden, Utah
Dixon’s first career goal was the game-winner for Army in its 3-0 victory Saturday over visiting Air Force.