Recapping events from Monday, February 2 – Sunday, January 8

TRACK & FIELD – Bengals Post Strong Showing at Mt. Union

Buffalo State's track and field teams competed in their second meet of the year on Saturday at the Mt. Union Invitational, and both teams posted several impressive showings. The men's team placed second of 10 teams with 132 points, and the women finished sixth of nine teams.

Justin Muise (Kenmore/Kenmore West) helped propel the men's team to the second place showing, as he finished first in the 400m dash with a time of 49.52, second in the 300m dash in 35.77, and ran a leg of the winning 4x400m relay (3:32.87). Rookie Ken Ciolek (Limestone/Bradford Area) also posted multiple top finishes, winning the triple jump (42' 3.75"), and placing second in the high jump (6' 4.75") and second in the long jump (20' 6.75"). Buffalo State's Michael Taylor (Cheektowaga/Maryvale) earned the victory in the long jump, leaping 21' 6.25". Tim Giagos (Rochester/Gates-Chili) added a second place showing in the 500m dash (1:08.54) and James Howze (Amherst/Sweet Home) crossed second in the 800m run (2:02.00).

On the women's side, sophomores Linda Williams (Rochester/Edison Tech) and Keyia Thompkins (Rochester/Edison Tech) finished first and third respectively in the 55m dash in 7.49 and 7.82. Other top finishes included Jackie Kirsch (East Aurora/East Aurora) in the triple jump (2nd/31' 10") and Jennifer Vacanti (Niagara Falls/Niagara Wheatfield) in the 1500m run (6th/5:18.20).

Both teams will compete this Friday at the Ohio Northern Invitational.

MEN’S HOCKEY – Bengals Fall at Oswego, Upset Cortland

Buffalo State was overwhelmed at Oswego on Friday, as the Lakers outshot the Bengals 50-28 on route to an 8-1 victory.

Oswego carried an 8-0 lead into the late stages of the game before Sean O'Connell (Buffalo) broke the shutout with 1:55 to play with assists from Greg Prybylski (Cheektowaga) and Matt Samson (W. Vancouver, BC). All three Buffalo State goaltenders saw action with Sean Sheehan (Mt. Laurel, NJ) making 27 saves on 33 shots, Adam Horvath (Coplay, PA) stopping nine of 11 shots, and Brendon Ramsay (Tampa, FL) kicking aside all six shots faced.

Buffalo State upset host Cortland, 5-2, Saturday in a SUNYAC battle.

Mike DeMarco (Niagara Falls) and David Wilmert (Ada, MI) each recorded a goal and an assist to lead the Bengals. Greg Prybylski (Cheektowaga), Nick DeMarco (Niagara Falls) and Mike Zalewski (Grand Rapids, MI) all added goals for Buffalo State. Sean Sheehan (Mt. Laurel, NJ) made 44 saves between the pipes.

Buffalo State improved to 6-16 overall and 2-9 in SUNYAC play. The Bengals next game will be this Friday when they host Geneseo at 7 p.m.

MEN’S BASKETBALL – Bengals Fall to Fredonia

Buffalo State fell to 10-8 overall and 4-6 in the SUNYAC after suffering a 62-61 loss at home against Fredonia on Tuesday. The Blue Devils improved to 8-10 overall and 4-5 in the conference.

The Bengals took a 36-30 lead into halftime but Fredonia came out and scored three straight buckets to tie the game up early into the second half. The Bengals held on to a three point advantage with just over five minutes to go when the Blue Devils hit a three to tie the game for the sixth time. Fredonia gained the lead with 4:19 on the clock after hitting their fifth three of the evening. The Bengals would be unable to topple their opponent’s lead and eventually fell 62-61.

Senior Perry Davis (Buffalo/Seneca) led the Bengals in scoring with 15 points and in rebounds with six. Guard Mike Miranto (N. Tonawanda/N. Tonawanda) was the team’s second leading scorer with 11 points. The Bengals went 10-21 from the charity stripe and were out-rebounded 44-33 by the visiting Blue Devils.

Buffalo State will be back in action on Tuesday, February play host to SUNYAC rival Brockport at 8:00 p.m.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL – Bengals Defeat Fredonia, Lose to Daemen

Buffalo State captured its fifth straight victory on Tuesday, defeating Fredonia (7-11/2-7), 62-52, at the Sports Arena.

After putting together a 13-3 run early in the first half, the Bengals went into the intermission with a 27-21 advantage. In the second stanza, Buffalo State extended its advantage to 15 points, but Fredonia battled back to close the gap to just 46-45 with 5:16 remaining. The Bengals responded with a 9-0 run over the next 2:01 to pull away, and hung on for the victory.

Senior Monique Hanks (Liverpool/Liverpool) led the Bengals with 16 points, and freshman Darnika Moseley (Liverpool/Liverpool) recorded 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Monique Hanks became the eighth player in Buffalo State women's basketball's 39-year history to score 1,000 career points, but the Bengals fell to Daemen (21-2), 85-60, Thursday at the Sports Arena.

Hanks entered the night with 990 career points, and wasted little time achieving the milestone. She went 5-for-6 to open the game and hit a lay-up 9:42 into the contest to reach the plateau, and cut the Daemen lead to 20-16. The Wildcats went on a 25-10 run from there, and took a 19-point lead into the intermission. Daemen mounted a 21-5 run early in the second stanza and never looked back.

Jacey Brooks (Machais/Franklinville) led the Bengals with a game-high 21 points. Hanks finished with 14 points, six rebounds and four steals, and Desi Gibson (Rochester/Edison Tech) added 10 points.

Buffalo State fell to 10-9 on the season and will return to the court Tuesday when it will host conference-rival Brockport at 6 p.m.

WOMEN’S HOCKEY – Bengals Drop a Pair of 4-1 Decisions at New England

Buffalo State lost its first-ever meeting with New England College on Saturday by a 4-1 margin.

New England tallied a pair of first period goals before Kim Costanzo (Cheektowaga) got the Bengals on the scoreboard midway through the second period. The Pilgrims added two more goals in the final stanza, however, to post the three-goal victory. Mary Keddie (Williamsville) made 37 saves for the Bengals as New England held a 41-20 advantage in shots on goal.

Buffalo State lost to New England for the second consecutive day by a margin of 4-1 on Sunday. The Bengals slip to 2-16-1 overall after losing a pair of road games to the Pilgrims.

New England would mount a four-goal lead going into the final period of play putting any hopes of a Buffalo State comeback in doubt. Freshman Jamie Overbeck (Tonawanda/Buffalo Bisons) scored the Bengal’s only goal of the game 2:27 into the third period. Fellow rookie Kristin Shumway (Hamden, CT/Connecticut Polar Bears) and senior Costanzo were credited with assisting Overbeck’s goal. Freshman goaltender Crissy Michalek (West Seneca/Buffalo Saints) made 52 stops in between the pipes in a game that saw the two teams combine for 47 penalty minutes.

Buffalo State returns to action on Sunday, February 15 for a non-conference tilt against MIAC opponent St. Mary’s. The puck drops at 4:00 pm.