Even when the Boston University men's soccer team has struggled this season &- as they did against the University of Massachusetts-Amherst on Sept. 1 &- they have still put up strong offensive numbers in the second half, sometimes surpassing their achievements in the first.
Through five games, they have made 48 shot attempts in the second half, as opposed to 36 in the first half. In Sunday's 2-1 loss to St. John's University, BU outshot the Red Storm 14-4 in the second half, doubling their chances from the first half.
On Friday against Seton Hall University, BU took six shots in the first half and nine in the second, and the late surge carried them to a come-from-behind win.
On the goalkeeping side of the stat sheet, redshirt freshman keeper Brandon Briggs was forced to make nine saves in the second half, compared with 10 in the first &- not a huge difference, but by comparison, opposing goalies have had to make 17 saves in the second against BU.
Earlier this month, the Terriers got off to a few slow starts due to a lack of rest but then settled into a faster pace in the second half. In the last few games, fatigue has been less of an issue, and BU has maintained its intensity to the end of every match, a characteristic that will serve the team well when they begin conference play on Oct. 2.
<strong>AE leaders</strong>
Though conference play will not begin for another three weeks, it's not too early to see which Terriers are emerging as top players in America East.
Junior midfielders Michael Bustamante and Ben Berube both rank in the top five in shots per game with Bustamante's 4.33 ranking just behind University of Maryland-Baltimore County standout Andrew Bulls. Berube ranks fifth with three shots per contest. Both finished in the top 10 in that category last year as well, at seventh and 10th respectively.
Senior forward Aaron O'Neal is tied for the league lead in goals with four and ranks third in points with eight. Last year, O'Neal finished third in AE in both points (26) and goals (11).
Briggs ranks fourth in the league in goals-against average (0.77), but the number is even more impressive considering that he has played 470 minutes, over 100 more than anyone else in the top 10. Of the three keepers ahead of him, only the University of New Hampshire's Colin O'Donnell has played more than 300 minutes in net. Briggs has also made 19 saves, good for second in the conference behind the University at Albany's Adrian Foncette.
<strong>2010 vs. 2009</strong>
After five games, the Terriers' record stands at 3-1-1 as they prepare to face Boston College. Last year after five games, BU was in the exact same situation &- the 2009 team opened the season with a 1-1 tie against UMass, as did the 2010 squad, and both teams even followed that tie with a 3-0 win (last year against the then-No. 12 University of Connecticut, this year against University of Hartford). Both teams then took two of their next three before playing against their biggest rivals. The 2010 team is certainly hoping the parallels will end there.
In last year's Battle of Comm. Ave., BU came away from Nickerson Field with a 1-0 loss thanks to a solid performance by Eagles goalkeeper Justin Luthy. BC has won nine of the last 10 matches between the two teams, and a number of current Terriers have experienced some of those particularly bitter defeats.
With an all-time record of 17-20-8 against the Eagles, BU will travel to Chestnut Hill on Friday in the hopes of making its first break from last year's pattern.
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