Binghamton men’s soccer hosted No. 2 Bryant on Saturday, dropping the game 2-0 and extending their losing streak to six in a row.

Bryant came out aggressively to begin the match, maintaining possession for much of the game’s opening minutes and applying pressure to the Bearcats’ backline. The Bulldogs took the first shot of the game in the eighth minute, ripping it directly at the center of the net, giving senior goalkeeper Jack Root an easy save. Two minutes later, Bryant earned a corner kick and subsequently scored, taking an early 1-0 lead. Bryant continued to search for twine, registering another shot on goal in the 13th minute of play.

“We were very prepared in the game,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “I thought the guys were very good, I thought the game plan was good, our execution was pretty good. Just really disappointed that we didn’t come at least away with a point in the game.”

Binghamton responded with a drive up while Bryant continued to apply pressure to the Bearcats’ backline, but didn’t register any more shots. Binghamton then drove up the field as junior forward Anthony Randazzo took the Bearcats’ first shot of the game in the 20th minute, but he came up short as the shot sailed over the net.

Both squads continued to search for the net, and Bryant nearly found it again in the 26th minute. However, the Bulldogs were denied another goal by Root as he made a leaping save. Bryant continued to attack the net with a quartet of shots over the remainder of the half, but the Bearcats’ backline held strong, as Root ended the half with six saves.

“We come in with a game plan for every game that maximizes our strengths and tries to negate the opponent’s strength,” Marco said. “Today, we did some things that we don’t normally do. We man marked a player, because one of their players is a superstar, and we put one of our better players against him and I thought he was terrific.”

Bryant continued to play aggressive offense to open the second half, taking another shot in the 52nd minute after a trifecta of corner kick attempts. Binghamton struggled to muster the game-tying score, creating an opportunity in the 59th minute, but sophomore forward D.T. Megliola lost possession and failed to find the net.

Bryant took two more shots in quick succession in the 61st and 63rd minutes, but Root saved both as he kept the Bearcats within striking range.

“I think [Root] was really good on the defensive side,” Marco said. ”I think that he needed to expand his performance tonight. I would say, yes, he was very good at shot-stopping. He needed to be better in the moments on the corners.”

As the clock wound down, Binghamton continued to search for its first goal of the night. The Bearcats began to apply more offensive pressure when Randazzo and junior midfielder Alex Balkey rattled off back-to-back shots in the 76th minute. But Bryant responded with yet another shot of its own in the 78th minute, before finding the back of the net in the 79th, making it a 2-0 game.

Binghamton generated another threatening chance in the 85th minute, but the Bulldogs prevented a shot attempt. Binghamton was held shotless to end the match as it suffered a 2-0 defeat.

“It just stings, like we are so close to turning the corner to winning games, and we get most of the match a good performance, and then we wet the bed on something, and today it was two corners,” Marco said. “But I’m proud of the guys. I think it was great to see [redshirt junior back Cailen Thomas], he passed a fitness test this morning, so it was great to see him back on the team, and hopefully he takes this little bit that he played today forward to next week.”

Binghamton will look to snap its losing streak on Saturday, Oct. 25, when it takes on Albany. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Tom & Mary Casey Stadium in Albany, New York.