COLUMBUS, OHIO - Butler kicked off the 2014 men's soccer season in impressive fashion with a 2-0 shutout of Canisius in the opening match of the Bert and Iris Wolstein Classic at Ohio State on Friday (Aug. 29).  The Bulldogs will meet host Ohio State in the final round on Sunday (Aug. 31).

Junior Vincent Mitchell scored the season's first goal just over 25 minutes into the match to put the Bulldogs in control.  The Butler midfielder took a pass from teammate Mitch Ostrowski and fired a shot to the left side of the net.  It proved to be the game-winner.

"After the first 10-12 minutes when we were adjusting, we settled in and looked very good on defense and we started getting some chances," said Butler head coach Paul Snape.  "Vinny Mitchell put it in the back of the net, and that really got us rolling."

Butler (1-0) picked up and insurance goal early in the second half when junior Jeff Adkins took a pass from freshman Joseph Bastian in the box and beat Canisius goalkeeper Andrew Coughlin with a shot to the near post.

That was all Butler's defense needed.  Led by a strong back-line effort and the steady play of goalkeeper Eric Dick, the Bulldogs held on for the shutout win.

"I thought the back-line was fantastic tonight and the goalkeeping very good," noted Snape.  "We've worked on our defensive mentality.  We've always been an attacking team, but we're not going to win championships if we're not going to get the balance right.  So we've focused on our defense and it's coming together."

Dick, who didn't allow a goal in 135 minutes of action in Butler's two exhibition matches, recorded his first career shutout.  He finished with one save, while going the distance in net.

The Bulldogs finished with a 10-5 advantage in shots and a 5-1 edge in shots on goal.  Mitchell led the team with a pair of shots on goal.

"It was a physical game," said Snape of the opener.  "(Canisius) presented some problems, but we matched them and we rose to the challenge.  I'm very, very pleased with the team's performance."

"Overall, I'm pleased with the result and it's going to give us some confidence and momentum going into Sunday's big game with Ohio State," added the Butler coach.

Butler will meet the host Buckeyes at Bert L. & Iris S. Wolstein Field at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at 2:30 p.m. (ET).