Photo: St. Bonaventure Athletics
BY ANDREW HALE, SPORTS EDITOR
Following a last-place finish in the Atlantic 10 Conference standings last season, the St. Bonaventure men’s soccer team has its sights set on a playoff appearance for the first time since 2017.
“Our program holds itself to the highest standard, and we know that making the playoffs is key to being a successful team in the A-10,” said senior defender David Cubillos. “We’ve had seasons where we’ve come extremely close, but just came up short. This is very important for the team, and I’m confident that the talent in our squad can let us meet this goal.”
The Bonnies’ potential road to the A-10 playoffs began Saturday against Fordham.
After holding the Rams to one goal in the first half, the Bonnies gave up two second-half goals 12 minutes apart and were defeated by Fordham 3-0.
Coach Kwame Oduro attributed the Ram’s success to a lack of aggression from the Bonnies.
“When we had the ball near half, we played like we were a little timid, a little scared and a little nervous, which is expected,” said Oduro. “Overall, we just didn’t cause enough problems for them to deal with. Before we got into the final third, the theme was that we rushed everything.”
Junior Kenzo Brito recorded two shots on goal against Fordham.
“I think our team started the match well, playing the ball well,” said Brito. “[Fordham] was more effective and took advantage of the opportunities they created. I think we had to impose ourselves and try to control the game more, both on the pitch and mentally.”
Prior to the matchup against Fordham, the Bonnies had scored a goal in every game this season.
“It’s always good to see goals go in right,” said Oduro. “It’s fun for everybody. And that’s why we play the game to score goals.”
Following the loss to Fordham, the Bonnies returned home to face Little Three rival Canisius on Wednesday.
The Bonnies defeated the Golden Griffins 4-0, picking up their first win over Canisius since 2019. Junior Andres Javitt led the way, scoring his team-leading fourth goal of the season.
“I feel that the goals always come from good team chemistry in the attack,” said Javitt. “By understanding the movements of everyone, I’ve been able to take advantage of some good assists by my teammates.”
Brito also found the back of the net against Canisius. Brito has scored for the third time in as many games.
“This is the result of my work and especially that of my teammates,” said Brito. “Now we need to keep working and try to improve training after training.”
Bonaventure improved its record to 3-3-1 with the win over the Golden Griffins.
While the Bonnies have scored 13 goals this season, they have given up 11. Oduro has made defense a point of emphasis throughout the season.
“As a team, we need to do better,” Oduro said. “I have no doubt that we can get goals on the score sheet, but we have to do better eliminating some silly errors. Teams have to find ways to score harder goals against us.”
The Bonnies continue their homestand as they face George Mason on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Both Bonaventure and George Mason were picked last and second to last, respectively, in the A-10’s preseason. Going into this A-10 clash, both teams are in similar positions as they fight for a playoff bid.
“[George Mason] has a lot of transfers on their squad, and they play soccer the right way,” said Oduro. “But we’re home so they have to come to us and play. I know it’s Family Weekend, so hopefully we have a lot of people here to watch the game.”
halea22@bonaventure.edu
