In the midst of a SUNYAC where SUNY Cortland has risen to the national rankings, the Oswego State men’s and women’s soccer teams continued their respective nonconference slates.

The men’s side kicked off alumni day with a win over RPI on Sept. 12, elevated by an early goal from senior midfielder Ian Husselbeck. Husselbeck’s score came off of a powerful leading pass from brother Kieran Husselbeck, which Ian used to launch a cross-body shot that deflected off the hand of opposing goalkeeper Noah Churchill and trailed into the goal. 

The Lakers used a physical and aggressive style of defense to hold off the Engineers for the remainder of the game, as experienced defenders Sean Gilligan and Ryan Bullis continually forced ball handlers into tough spots all over the field. 

The Lakers emerged with a 1-0 win over 90 minutes, marking their second shutout victory of the season. They were unfortunately downed by Ithaca College and the University of Rochester in their ensuing pair of matches, falling to 2-3-1 on the season. Vladimir Lavrynenko and Kieran Husselbeck both struck early against Ithaca, although the Bombers responded with three unanswered goals to put the finishing touches on a 5-2 victory.

The Lakers were shutout 3-0 against Rochester, putting just two shots on goal throughout the entire match. Now sitting at 2-3-1 on the season, Oswego will begin SUNYAC play against SUNY Fredonia on Sept. 30 in a battle set to kick off at 4 p.m. 

On the women’s side, the Lakers opened up the Fredonia Tournament with a 3-0 win over Alfred University. It was a defensive battle in the early stages, before junior forward Sabrina Schmitt began an offensive onslaught. Schmitt received a pitch-perfect pass from Elizabeth Cingranelli in the corner, slicing through one defender and sneaking it past the opposing goalkeeper, beginning a streak of three unanswered goals from the team within an eight-minute span. 

A few minutes after Schmitt notched the score, senior forward Kyla Sustad was found on a leading pass from Alison Dimitrijevski, calculating a soft grounding shot that found the back of the net. The Lakers put the cap on a 3-0 victory five minutes later, when junior forward Kaylee Elliott launched a one-timer shot above the head of Fredonia’s goalkeeper. The Lakers stood tall on defense throughout the remainder of the match, signaling their second victory of the season and first shutout win since Oct. 1, 2025, against SUNY Canton. 

Unfortunately for the Lakers, the success failed to translate to the rest of the tournament. They suffered a narrow 2-1 loss to Utica University , before falling in shutouts to both St. Lawrence and Marywood. 

Like the men’s side, the women’s will stay on the theme of Fredonia, as they head back out to University Stadium for the SUNYAC play opener at 4 p.m.