BUFFALO — Buffalo State senior Melissa Smith (N. Tonawanda/Niagara-Wheatfield) made sure that her final regular season match at Coyer Field would be a memorable one, as the forward netted three goals and two assists to help women’s soccer collect a 6-1 win over visiting St. John Fisher College this afternoon.
It didn’t take long for Buffalo State to get on the board in this one, as Smith headed in a shot off of the crossbar by Catherine Mammoser (Eden/Eden) just five minutes into the match to give the Bengals a 1-0 lead. Under a minute later, the Bengals pounced again, as Victoria Colotti (New Windsor/Newburgh Free) got her head on a corner kick from Smith and put it past the goalkeeper to make it 2-0, Buffalo State. In the 17th minute, Smith made a quick deke and found a streaking Tianna Hatch (Endicott/Elmira Free Academy) down the wing, who turned the pass from Smith into a clean breakaway before sending her shot into the back of the net to make it 3-0. Just six minutes later, Smith found herself in front of the net battling for a loose ball. Like she has done all season, Smith won the ball from the scrum in front and put it into the net for her second of the game to push the lead to 4-0. The two teams would head into the half with Buffalo State leading 4-0 and holding a 14-2 advantage in shots. Colotti got the scoring started in the second half, as, like Smith, she found herself in a battle for the ball in a crowd in front of the net. Colotti eventually gained possession and ripped a shot that beat the keeper to make it 5-0. Smith got her hat trick in the 62nd minute off of a beautiful cross and another assist by Mammoser. Mammoser was breaking down the wing and found a wide open Smith in front of the net, who converted the header to make it 6-0. St. John Fisher added a goal in the 86th minute but it was much too little, too late as Buffalo State cruised to its 15th win of the season.
With the win, Buffalo State set a new program record for most consecutive wins with 12. The Bengals also tied a program record for most wins in a season with 15.
Buffalo State hosts the SUNYAC semifinals on Nov. 2 at Coyer Field. The Bengals will be taking on the winner of No. 4 Plattsburgh and No. 5 Oswego.
from BuffaloStateAthletics.com via IFTTT
