Braden Scales tallies two in Buffalo Men’s Soccer shutout of VMI

The 2-0 final score may be less flashy than I was expecting, but UB Men’s Soccer needed only a few minutes, and one blazing counterattack, to establish their place on the pitch today against VMI.

That place was the Keydets’ end of the field, where UB buzzed for long stretches in their win, enjoying a massive speed advantage over the hosts. Braden Scales scored both for the Bulls, opening in the first half off a long run, and emphasizing the Bulls’ advantages quite literally from the gun in the second half, potting a second off a Russell Cicerone feed just seconds into the period.

Joe Kuta earns his fifth straight shutout for the Bulls, just two off the program record set by Bobby Shuttleworth in 2008. Officially, VMI took four shots, but only one was on target, and Kuta earned the clean sheet without needing to make a save until an ugly mess of a scramble in the box in the final two minutes.

Scales’ brace brought him to four on the year, a new career high. I was unable to watch much of the second half, but in the first Scales was one of the most active players on the pitch and was able to do most whatever he liked while VMI defenders collapsed on Cicerone.

UB remains in Virginia this weekend to take on Liberty at 1:00 PM Sunday. The Flames beat this same VMI team 5-2 earlier in the season while also claiming wins against Howard and USC Upstate. Video streaming will be available through the Liberty website.