St. Francis soccer extends unbeaten streak to six

Defending NEC Champions Earn Scoreless Draw at Albany

October 1, 2014 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

St. Francis goalie Jack Binks made three saves Tuesday as Downtown’s Terriers extended their unbeaten streak to six games in Albany, N.Y.

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Just two weeks ago, the defending Northeast Conference men’s soccer champions from Downtown’s St. Francis College were wondering when they’d nab their first win of the season.

The Terriers haven’t lost since.

Junior goaltender Jack Binks’ brilliant stop in the 102nd minute of extra time Tuesday night at Bob Ford Field preserved a scoreless tie at Albany as St. Francis escaped the state’s capital with a season-high six-match unbeaten streak (4-0-2) intact.

“We feel that we’re playing much better,” St. Francis head coach Tom Giovatto told the Eagle after his team finally got off the schneid with a 3-0 triumph over Howard at Brooklyn Bridge Park on Sept. 16.

That victory stopped a season-opening 0-4-1 slide for the Terriers, who were fresh off their first conference crown in 15 years.

“[We’re] definitely [playing with] a little bit more confidence,” Giovatto added. “It’s a new group so we’re trying to mesh together.”

It appears as if the new-look Terriers, who lost key players like Gabriel Bagot and Kevin Correa from last year’s team, are meshing just fine the past few weeks.

After shutting out Howard, St. Francis (4-4-2) blanked Army, St. Peter’s and Rider by identical 2-0 scores before battling the Great Danes to a 0-0 draw after two overtimes.

Binks, who finished with three saves en route to his 10th career shutout, has not allowed a goal in the last 492:32 minutes – that’s enough time to watch all three Godfather films.

The scoreless streak was almost snapped when St. Francis’ Riccardo Milano and Paul Galimi were unable to clear a ball late in the first overtime.

Albany’s Mike Wilson took advantage, breaking through the Terriers’ defense and taking a blast from 15 yards out that Binks was just able to keep from net, preserving his team’s unbeaten run through the tail end of its non-conference slate.

St. Francis Brooklyn outshot Albany, 14-11, while the home team took a 5-2 advantage on corner kicks.

The streaking Terriers will conclude their non-conference slate at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 as they host the NJIT Highlanders on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Official defense of their conference title begins at Sacred Heart on Oct. 10, the start of a three-game NEC road trip that includes visits to St. Francis (Pa.) and Robert Morris.

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The Brooklyn College women’s soccer squad was enjoying a three-game winning streak before Monday’s 3-0 home loss to FDU-Florham.

The Bulldogs (3-5) had also bounced back from a season-opening four-game slide by knocking off Jersey City University, John Jay and CCNY by an aggregate of 10-0 before being blanked by the visiting Devils (4-4-1).

BC will be off until Saturday, when they host CUNYAC rival York at high noon. The BC men’s squad will face Medgar Evers immediately following the women’s game, trying to improve on its 3-7 mark thus far this season.

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The LIU-Brooklyn women’s volleyball team didn’t let a little national attention go to its head.

The reigning two-time NEC champion Blackbirds opened NEC play with a straight-set (25-14, 25-13, 25-16) rout of neighborhood rival St. Francis Brooklyn Sunday afternoon on Remsen Street.

LIU (10-5, 1-0 NEC) got 14 kills and a blistering .444 hitting percentage from junior standout Tamara Ignjic as it dropped the struggling Terriers to 2-15 on the season.

Reigning two-time NEC Player of the Year Annika Foit added 11 kills and two service aces, while junior Adriana Vinas Joy had a team-high 16 digs for the Blackbirds, who will hit the road to take on Fairleigh Dickinson Saturday afternoon before hosting Sacred Heart back here on Sunday.

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The LIU-Brooklyn women’s bowling team was ranked 14th in the National Ten Pin Coaches Association 2014-15 preseason poll, which was released Tuesday.

The ranking was the highest preseason mark in program history for the Blackbirds, with their previous best coming the year before at No. 16.

LIU Brooklyn earned 134 point in the 20-team poll. The University of Nebraska was ranked first with 11 first-place votes, followed by Arkansas State, Sam Houston State, Vanderbilt and UMES to round out the top five. The Blackbirds defeated Sam Houston twice last season, and also posted wins against Vanderbilt and UMES.

LIU returns five bowlers from last season, including senior Brittany Hart, who was an NTCA Honorable Mention All-American and an All-NEC second team selection. The Blackbirds also welcomed four newcomers.

The Blackbirds went 68-58 in 2013-14, and qualified for the NEC Championships after finishing fourth in the regular-season standings. They concluded the season with a No. 14 ranking in the final NTCA poll.

LIU Brooklyn begins the 2014-15 season on Oct. 18 at the Kutztown Fall Invitational in Reading, Pa.