Oct. 1, 2006
HOUSTON, Texas - Senior Roberta Pelarigo (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and freshman Becca Thomas (Burlington, Wash./Homeschooled) each scored a pair of goals as UCF dropped host Houston, 5-1, in Conference USA women's soccer action on Sunday afternoon.
The victory was the Golden Knights' second consecutive league win as the team improved to 6-4-1 overall and 2-0-0 in C-USA. The Cougars fell to 7-5 overall and 1-1-0 in the conference.
Sophomore Hanna Wilde (Westlake, Ohio/Westlake HS) opened the scoring for UCF when she found the back of the net in the 26th minute. The original shot from freshman Nikki Moore (Virginia Beach, Va./Cape Henry Collegiate School) was blocked away but Wilde corralled the rebound and chipped it past Houston goalkeeper Shelby Scott.
The Cougars answered in the 30th minute with their only goal of the match. Sophomore Brittney Pfeiffer scored on a point blank shot with an assist to freshman Jordan Godbolt. Just under four minutes later, Pelarigo regained the lead for the Golden Knights when she went one-on-one with Scott and knocked the ball in the right side of the net. Thomas assisted.
UCF continued to build upon its advantage in the second half. Thomas recorded the first of her two goals on a long ball from 35 yards in the 79th minute before Pelarigo banked a shot off the post to score her fifth goal of the season in the 86th minute. Both were assisted by senior Shannon Wing (Gulf Breeze HS).
With 18 seconds remaining in the match, Thomas scored unassisted when she tipped the ball into the net.
UCF held a slight edge in shots, 16-14, and in corner kicks, 6-3. UCF keeper Jennifer Manis (Pensacola, Fla./Washington HS) and Scott each made five saves.
The Golden Knights return home to host Memphis on Friday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. and UAB on Sunday, Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. Both matches will be played at the UCF Soccer Complex.
Admission to UCF home women's soccer matches during the 2006 season is free courtesy of McDonald's. For the latest news and information on the Golden Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF athletics.