St. Bonaventure

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – The St. Bonaventure women's soccer team was unable to overcome a first half deficit Monday evening, falling to Little Three rival Niagara, 3-1, under the lights at the Marra Athletics Complex.
 
Though the Bonnies (2-3) began the match with impressive pace, recording the first three shots overall within the opening 12 minutes, the Purple Eagles (3-1) found their stride midway through the first stanza and began effectively spreading the field to find attacking lanes. Goals in the 29th and 43rd minutes positioned the visitors with a two-score lead at the halfway point.
 
Bona's lone score came in the 52nd minute off the right foot of senior Audrey Cadman. As Cadman began breaking toward the visitors' net, freshman Ava Reybitz lobbed a through ball into open space, allowing Cadman to collect the feed in stride and continue her sprint. The first-year Bonnie outran the Niagara defense and fired a shot just past goalkeeper Julia Poissant, recording her first goal at the Division I level.
 
Despite bringing SBU within one score, Cadman's goal was not enough to spark a comeback for the hosts. The Purple Eagles extended their lead once again in the 71st minute, finding space near the far post on a cross and capitalizing. Following a delay for replay review for possible offsides, the decision was upheld, granting the visitors a 3-1 advantage which they would protect until the clock showed all zeroes.
 
Bona senior Juliana Castellano tallied both her third start and third complete game of the season in net, making seven total saves. A victim of some unfortunate bounces, a pair of her first-half saves rebounded into the box and were subsequently turned into goals by the Purple Eagles.
 
Niagara head coach Donny George, who covered head coaching duties for the Bonnies in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, earned a win in his return to the Marra Athletics Complex.
 
QUOTES FROM HEAD COACH RAY LEONE
"We definitely fought hard against a good Niagara team today. The first 20 minutes were about as good as we've played, we just didn't sustain it."
 
"We're making technical mistakes, and maybe some mental mistakes as well, but technical mistakes are leading to goals. So we have to just keep improving. I'm looking forward to having good, proper training to fix all of the things we're learning about."
 
UP NEXT
The Bonnies will complete their four-game home stand this coming Sunday as they will welcome Cleveland State at 1:00 p.m. for Senior Day.
 
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For the latest news on St. Bonaventure athletics, stay connected on social media. Follow the Bonnies on X @GoBonnies and get women's soccer updates @BonniesWSoccer. Keep up with the Bonnies on Facebook /GoBonnies and on Instagram @GoBonnies. Bonnies women's soccer can be found on Instagram @bonnieswsoccer.