The X-Men soccer team opened up the AUS season this past weekend on the road, playing to a 1-1 with Moncton on Saturday, then falling 3-0 to UNB on Sunday.
Reflecting on the game against the Aigles Bleus, X-Men head coach Graham Kennedy said, "We kept possession against a big Moncton squad, but could not penetrate at times. We are playing out from our defensive third and need to work on playing though midfield."
"We were unfortunate not to get the win against Moncton after a missed penalty could have sealed three points."
Third year X-Men winger Randy Ribeiro (Cambridge, Ont.) opened the scoring in the game as he put away a penalty kick in the 27th minute.
Moncton's Maxime Daigle scored the equalizer in the second half as his shot off a free kick in the 50th minute beat X-Men keeper Sam Hutchison.
Hutchison had three saves in the game as the visiting X-Men outshot the Aigles Bleus 11-4.
In Sunday's 3-0 loss to UNB, the home squad got on the score board early as Victor Karosan scored off a corner kick two minutes into the game.
Marcus Lee added to the lead in the 47th minute, charging in to a challenging StFX keeper Steven Rodenhizer and beating him, shooting the ball in over his head.
The Varsity Reds final goal was scored not long after in the 54th minute by Robert Parks as the ball bounced around the StFX goal crease following a corner kick, eventually finding its way into the mesh.
The UNB defense shut the X-Men down as both teams were held scoreless in the second half.
Coach Kennedy reflected, "UNB is always a difficult test for us because they are quick, organized and athletic. They caught us in transition on several situations and we were napping on a defensive corner kick that gave them an early 1-0 lead."
"Our intensity and work rate are high, but poor decisions killed us. We have to get back to basics this week and simplify our game."
The X-Men are set to host Acadia (2-0-0) on Saturday, September 14th in a 4:15 game at Oland Stadium, followed by a Sunday game against UPEI (0-1-1), also at 4:15.