Siena overcame an early deficit to defeat the Canisius College men's soccer team on Sunday afternoon, 2-1. The loss drops the Griffs to 8-5-2 on the season and 1-4-0 in MAAC play, while the Saints remain in first place in the conference standings with a 5-1-0 league mark and a 9-6-0 overall record.

"I thought Siena played very well today but at the same time, we made it very easy for them," said Canisius head coach Dermot McGrane. "I thought we were lucky to be tied at one at halftime as there was a lot of pressure on us in the first. In the second half, we stepped up our performance a bit but it wasn't enough in the end."

The Griffs wasted no time grabbing the early advantage, taking advantage of sophomore Asani Samuels' speed in the fourth minute. Senior Gavin Falconer sent a ball through the Siena defense and Samuels slipped it past the Saints keeper for the early 1-0 advantage.

Siena answered back in the 22nd minute when Sindre Ek took a loose ball and fired it in to knot the game at one at the intermission.

Ek added a second tally less than two minutes into the second frame. After a Canisius turnover, Ek gained possession of the ball and a tremendous finish gave the Saints a 2-1 lead it would not relinquish.

The Griffs were unable to find the equalizer late as the Saints earned their sixth-straight home victory to remain in first place of the MAAC standings.

Siena finished the game with a 16-10 advantage in shots on the afternoon and a 10-5 edge in corner kicks.

Sophomore Eric DeHond continued his strong play in net for the Griffs, recording eight saves in his second start at Canisius. Adam Myers posted two saves in the winning effort for the Saints.

Canisius returns to action next Friday, hosting Iona at the Demske Sports Complex. Game time in Buffalo is set for 7 p.m.