The St. Bonaventure men's soccer team heads south this weekend for the Fairfield Inn by Marriott Invitational hosted by James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va.
The Bonnies (0-2-0) are competing in this event for the second consecutive season. Their first matchup will be Friday (Aug. 31) at 7:00 p.m. against host school James Madison. Then on Sunday (Sept. 2) at noon SBU will take on Virginia Tech.
St. Bonaventure will be looking for their first win of the season this weekend after dropping games against Bowling Green and Big 4 rival Buffalo to start the season. SBU scored just one goal between those games while giving up five. Junior forward Brad Beaumont is the only player to find the back on the net for the Brown and White so far.
James Madison (0-2-0) is off to a rocky start going winless in two neutral field games after finishing last season with a loss to No. 5 UConn in the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament Round of 16. They will return seven starters and 16 letterwinners from the 2011 team that finished with a 13-5-2 record. Of those players returning, the Dukes can boast preseson Colonial Athletic Association co-player of the year Paul Wyatt. Christian McLaughlin and Dale Robins-Bailey recieved All-CAA Honorable Mention. Wyatt has also been named to Soccer America's preseason All-America Team. He was also selected to the College Sports Madness All-America Second Team. So far this season, the Dukes have suffered losses to Richmond and SIU-Edwardsville in the Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational hosted by Virginia Tech. Each game was a 1-0 loss for the Dukes. Their matchup with the Bonnies on Friday will serve as their home opener.
Virginia Tech (1-1-0) finished last season with a 4-13-2 record defeating the No. 1 team in the nation, North Carolina, by a score of 1-0 in double-overtime in the process. SBU and Virginia Tech have met five times in their histories. VT holds a 3-2 series advantage with the last meeting coming in 1999. The Hokies defeated the Bonnies that day 3-1 in Blacksburg, Va. So far this season VT has lost to SIU-Edwardsville 3-1, and defeated Richmond 1-0.
The Bonnies have struggled to find the back of the net so far this season despite outshooting their opponents in both games. In total the Bonnies have outshot their competitors 33-29. SBU has also attempted 18 corner kicks while their opponents have attempted just eight. Junior Brad Vanino leads the way offensively having attempted nine shots.
These two games will be the third and fourth of the season opening six-game road slate for the Bonnies. SBU will follow up this tournament by traveling to Oneonta, N.Y. for the Mayor's Cup Invitational. The Bonnies will meet Hartwick in the first game on Friday (Sept. 7). The second game will see SBU take on Big East foe Syracuse on Sunday (Sept. 9). The links to live stats and video (registration required) are included above and as always there will be extensive coverage via Twitter @Go_Bonnies and @BonniesMSoccer.
