Football

Connecticut 24, UB 21

A few precious mistakes were the only thing separating UB from its first Division I-A victory in 30 years.

The Bulls played visiting Connecticut on even terms but saw two key second-half turnovers and a few mental mistakes keep them from snapping a 17-game losing streak. UB fell to 0-3 on the season.

The Bulls had two costly turnovers in the second half and dug themselves a 24-13 deficit with under eight minutes remaining in the game. But they rallied behind great special-teams play and gritty defense and nearly pulled off the miracle.

Athletes of the week

Andre Forde of the football team scored two touchdowns in UB's 24-21 loss to Connecticut on Saturday. Forde recorded career-highs with six receptions for 95 yards. His two touchdown catches equal his 1999 total when he played in all 11 games. He is averaging 12.2 yards per reception this season, second on the team. Keri Shiels of the volleyball team earned All-Tournament honors at the Northwestern Wildcat Classic as the Bulls compiled a 1-2 mark at the tournament. Shiels tallied 35 kills, 22 digs and three service aces in three matches. This season, she leads the team with 93 kills (2.82 per game) and is second in digs with 67 (2.03 per game).

After a partially blocked punt, the Bulls drove 41 yards in eight plays, capped when quarterback Joe Freedy hit split end Andre Forde with a three-yard scoring strike. Freedy then hit freshman flanker Zeke McKine with the two-point conversion, cutting the lead to 24-21 with 2:20 left.

After the Bulls blocked a kick, senior Scott Keller's 58-yard try fell short, giving the Huskies the win.

Soccer

Men

UB 1, Siena 1
UB 2, Long Island University 1

UB fought to a 1-1 tie with Siena Friday night to open a weekend road swing. The Bulls grabbed the early lead but could not hold on as Siena tied it in the second half and both teams went scoreless in the two 15-minute overtime periods.

The Bulls bounced back to record a 2-1 win at Long Island University. It was the second-straight year the Bulls have defeated the Blackbirds.

Women

UB 4, Kent State 2
UB 2, Stony Brook 0
Jacksonville 4, UB 3

After losing to Kent State in an overtime game each of the past two years, UB finally got its revenge, defeating the Golden Flashes 4-2 to open the Mid-American Conference portion of the season. UB scored twice in each half, and was led by freshman Nicole Olszewski, who scored two goals in the game.

The Bulls then traveled to the Stony Brook Holiday Inn Express Tournament, where they downed the host Seawolves in the opener, 2-0, but fell in the championship match to Jacksonville, 4-3.

Volleyball

Cleveland State 3, UB 0 (16-14, 16-14, 15-5)
Northwestern 3, UB 1 (15-12, 15-4, 12-15, 15-2)
UB 4, Towson State 1 (15-3, 12-15, 15-11, 15-9)

Buffalo finished with a 1-2 record at the Northwestern Wildcat Classic,

losing to Cleveland State and Northwestern before defeating Towson State.

Freshman Lindsay Matikosh had team highs of nine kills and nine digs, and junior Larissa LaCour posted 39 assists, a career-high seven kills, seven digs and three blocks to lead the Bulls against Cleveland State.

Junior Keri Shiels paced the Bulls against Northwestern with 12 kills and a team-high seven digs.

Shiels posted a match-high 19 kills and 11 digs and junior Sasha Courbat added 12 kills and 10 digs to lead the Bulls over Towson.

Cross Country

The women's and men's cross-country teams placed third and fourth, respectively, in Saturday's Ram Cross Country Invitational hosted by Fordham University and held in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx.

The women scored 93 points to place third behind a pair of Ivy-League squads-Yale, with a winning total of 17, and Cornell with 38. UB finished ahead of Fordham (123), Columbia (127) and Long Island (188).

The men's squad scored 104 points, earning fourth place and trailing Cornell (15) and the second-place tie between Fordham and Rutgers (87 each). UB placed in front of Southern Connecticut at 117 and Connecticut at 122.

Tennis

Men

UB 4, Marist 3

The men's tennis program began its season with an impressive 4-3 victory over downstate-rival Marist Sunday in the UB Tennis Center.

UB began the match sluggishly, dropping its first and second doubles matches, 8-1, and 8-5 respectfully. The third-doubles tandem of sophomore Brent Persia and junior Tim Powell notched an 8-2 victory over its opponents.

The Bulls dominated the singles competition, capturing four of the seven matches.

Women

Marist 4, UB 3
UB 5, Canisius 2

The women's tennis team opened its season by splitting a pair of home matches. UB fell to Marist on Saturday, 4-3, but bounced back on Sunday to defeat local rival Canisius, 5-2.

Against Marist, UB was led by its first-, fourth- and sixth-singles players. Also tallying a win for UB was the number-three doubles duo.

Against Canisius, the Bulls started slowly, posting only one win in doubles competition However, UB bounced back in singles play, losing only one match.