CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Freshman Kolby Banker scored his first collegiate goal and the fourth-seeded men's soccer team out-played fifth-seeded Saint Louis to the tune of a 9-1 second-half shot advantage, but it could not overcome the Billikens two first-half goals in a 2-1 defeat this evening in quarterfinal action of the Atlantic 10 Championship.
Banker brought the Bonnies within one goal just five minutes into the second frame off a feed from senior Fabrizio Savarino to garner the first two points of his career. The Grand Island, N.Y. native gathered the ball in congestion and fired it past Billikens keeper Mark Pais, who made just two saves on the day.
Saint Louis, which lost to the Bonnies in the regular season by a 1-0 overtime margin, got on the Transamerica Field scoreboard first when in the 29th minute a clear attempt by the St. Bonaventure defense bounced off the shin of one of its one and into the gaping goal mouth. The Billikens then followed that St. Bonaventure own-goal tally with another deflected-aided goal nine minutes later as the ball bounced off a defender and onto the foot of Alex Johnson, who had nothing but a wide open net to shoot at.
"It really was a game of two halves," head coach Mel Mahler said afterward. "Give Saint Louis credit as they were able to get two goals, but on the corner (second goal) we just didn't get to the ball early enough to clear and it and the bounce was unfortunate. And (on their first goal) we didn't do a good enough job on their counter to defend it."
After being out-shot in the first half, 8-3, the Bonnies got their footing in the second half to control most of the play as they not only outshot the Billikens but also out-cornered them by a 5-1 margin.
"I thought we were the better team in the second half and had three or four quality scoring chances," Mahler said. "I really thought it was some of best soccer we've played all year. We did everything but score.
"We created enough chances to tie but they made some good defensive stands," Mahler continued. "In a tournament setting you can't just play a good 45 minutes; you've got to play a good 90."
The Bonnies complete the season with a 10-8-1 mark and a fourth-place A-10 showing after being selected to finish 11th in the preseason poll. The 10 wins signifies the program's second consecutive year of double-digit wins for the first time since a three-year run from 1997-99.
Additionally, the team's final goal connection of the year encapsulates the 2010 season in a nutshell. Mahler will lose 10 seniors to graduation, but will also return 14 freshmen letterwinners as 99 percent of the team's total offense (75 of 76 points) came from either the freshman (55 percent) or senior class (44 percent).
"It really tells the story of who we are," Mahler commented on the Savarino-Banker connection. "The seniors and freshmen worked really well together, and the freshmen aren't playing like freshmen at this time of the year. It's really bitter sweet, but the seniors took this program to the next level and now they leave it in the hands of freshmen to carry the flag of St. Bonaventure soccer into the future."
Game Notes: Senior Chris Leko (2G, 3A) missed his final collegiate game due to a medical condition … senior David Flynn needed to make just two saves for the Bonnies … 26 total fouls were committed, 14 to the Billikens and 12 to the Bonnies … the two keepers combined for just six total saves.
