CMU soccer draws with Buffalo in final game of season
With 15 seconds on the clock and the game tied at zero, the University of Buffalo's offense cruised down the field and found themselves with a wide open look at the net.
Everyone held their breath as the ball flew through the air, and the final seconds ticked away. The home crowd breathed a deep sigh of relief as Central Michigan soccer's goalkeeper Allison LaPoint plucked the ball out of the air right before time expired.
The game against the Bulls ended in a scoreless draw with CMU subsequently eliminated from the hunt for the Mid-American Conference playoffs.
"Going into today there were only two teams eliminated there was so many teams in the mix of making the tournament," head coach Jeremy Groves sid. "Before conference play started we were fourth in win percentage throughout all the conferences in America."
The Chippewas finish the regular season with a record of 5-8-5 on the year and 3-4-4 in MAC play.
The game began with a competitive back and fourth between the opposing offenses with no team clearly able to pull away as the ball was kept in the middle of the field.
Central Michigan midfielder Ashley Scesniak got the first look at the net after a fielded corner kick was saved by the Buffalo goalkeeper.
Both teams routinely traded possessions before CMU began to find their rhythm on offense late in the first half.
The Chippewas began rattling off shots at the net, but Buffalo goalkeeper Lexie Thompson was lights out as she continued dismissing everything thrown her way.
Both teams went into halftime scoreless, with Central Michigan outshooting the Bulls 7-1 and thoroughly dominating the corners.
Coming out of halftime CMU took control over the game with a fast pace offensive attack that saw two shots on goal back-to-back, but ultimately both were stopped by the Bulls goalkeeper.
At the 70-minute mark, Buffalo began finding a rhythm of their own after two corner kicks gave them good looks at the net.
LaPoint remained perfect on the night, successfully thwarting the offensive attack. She faced 11 shots in the second half alone, sealing the draw.
The draw was not enough to punch the Chippewas ticket to the Mid-American Conference playoffs, but the 5-8-5 record is an improvement from last years 2-8-6.
The game marked the last game that a handful of players will wear the maroon and gold jersey, as the program prepares to say farewell to it's seniors.
"This class of seniors has gone through so much adversity," Groves said. "Two years ago we could only field 14 players, so we played a lot of games with hardly any players, so they've been through the trials and tribulations."
