BUFFALO, N.Y. - Senior midfielder Frank Poppolo (Brampton, Ont./West Virginia Wesleyan College) scored his first goal in a Daemen uniform and freshman goalkeeper Justin Figler (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) earned his first career shutout as the Daemen College men's soccer team made the short 10-mile trek to blank D'Youville College, 1-0, in non-conference play under the lights at Dobson Field tonight.

The win tonight snaps a three-game slide for the Wildcats, moving them to 2-4-0 on the season.  D'Youville, an NCAA Division III member and affiliate of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference, drops to 1-6-0 with the loss.

The first half played out without any scoring plays despite Daemen owning a sizeable edge in total shots (13-2) in the period.  The second half saw more of the same as Daemen out-shot the host Spartans 23-5 in the game, including a 10-2 advantage in shots on goal.

The Wildcats' persistence paid off, getting on the board with Poppolo's unassisted tally at the 68:06 mark.  That was all they needed as Figler turned away both Spartan shots on goal, one in each half, to seal the deal.

D'Youville goalkeeper Brett Matthews made nine saves to keep the Spartans in it, but it wasn't enough to keep his team from suffering its second-straight defeat.

The outcome tonight marked Daemen's first 1-0 shutout victory since October 21, 2012 versus SUNY Canton.  Kyle Clifford, now an assistant coach, got the lone tally in that one to deliver the Daemen victory.

Tonight's game also concluded the non-conference portion of Daemen's 2015 schedule.  The Wildcats will play 10 East Coast Conference contests to close the regular season, beginning with three-straight on the road.  The first two happen this weekend as Daemen visits Mercy College on Friday (September 25) and Saint Thomas Aquinas College on Sunday (September 27).  

For continuing coverage of the Daemen men's soccer team throughout the season, follow @DaemenAthletics and @DaemenMSOC on Twitter.