Sept. 24, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Senior Ryan Roushandel (Atlanta, Ga.) tallied two first-half goals as UCF (4-3-0) defeated visiting North Florida (3-5-0) 3-1 in men's non-conference soccer action Wednesday night at the UCF Soccer Complex. The win was the Knights third-straight overall and fourth in their past five games.
"We wanted to start really fast today and put UNF under a lot of pressure early," head coach Bryan Cunningham said. "We were able to do that and get a goal and just wanted to keep the momentum building from there."
With the victory the Knights, now ranked sixth in the NSCAA/adidas South Region poll, equal their win total from 2007.
Roushandel, the team's leading scorer in 2007, had not scored this season since being moved to the back line to provide experience to the defensive unit. In the 25th minute, Yaron Bacher (Atlanta, Ga.) found Roushandel with a pass at the top of the box. The senior fired a left-footed shot from 31 yards past the UNF keeper to the left post for his first goal of the season and a 1-0 lead.
"It was the first goal of the year for me," Roushandel said. "Playing in the back I do not get too many chances so it felt good scoring at home. The crowd got behind us after the goal and it gave us a boost."
With under a minute left in the first half, Roushandel send a long pass into the box. Freshman Chris Feigenbaum (Fayetteville, Ga.) cut the ball off in front of the keeper and was header towards an open goal before being tripped up by Tony Restino. The UNF keeper was sent off with a red card, and Roushandel delivered the penalty kick with nine seconds on the clock for a 2-0 lead.
"That is the beauty of Ryan and Bryan [Collier]'s ability in the back that they can make runs forward and they are comfortable with the ball," said Cunningham. "We have a smart central midfield that helps cover for them when they move up, and it paid off tonight with Ryan scoring two goals."
UNF came out of the locker room determined to make it a game, and cut the lead in half in the 52nd minute when Matthew Hollyoak scored in close off a corner kick from Sebastian Bianchi.
Feigenbaum gave the Knights a cushion in the 81st minute, getting a foot on a beautiful free kick from Bacher to deflect it passed the Osprey keeper into the net. It was the first career goal for the freshman.
Bacher threatened to get the Knights a second goal with two minutes left in the opening half, but his shot from 13 yards away banged off the post and just missed crossing the goal line.
Entering Wednesday, UCF had not tallied a first-half goal in its first six games. The Knights outshot UNF 13-2 in the opening period Wednesday and tallied a season-high 20 shots in the game.
The UNF goal ended a scoreless streak of nearly 240 minutes for keeper Sean Johnson (Lilburn, Ga.) and the UCF defense. Johnson made three saves in the contest.
"The defense is coming together really well," said Collier, a senior defender from Fayetteville, Ga. "We have two senior backs in the middle and we have Sean back in goal so there is great leadership in the back. We practice hard to understand what we need to do; staying late and getting to practice early to make sure our formations and our defensive pressure is good."
UCF goes on the road for another test next week, playing at Charlotte on Tuesday, September 30. The game is slated for a 7 p.m. kickoff. Charlotte was receiving votes in the most recent NSCAA/adidas national poll and is currently 35th nationally.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Men's Soccer Game Summary (Final)
UNF (3-5-0) vs UCF (4-3-0)
Orlando, Fla. (UCF Soccer Complex)
Date: Sep 24, 2008 Attendance: 371
Weather: 72, partly cloudy and windy
Goals by period 1 2 Tot
UNF..........................0 1 - 1
UCF..........................2 1 - 3
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 24:14 UCF Roushandel, Ryan (1) (Yaron Bacher) - ball played back above box, shot from 31 yards
2. 44:51 UCF Roushandel, Ryan (2) (unassisted) - penalty kick
3. 51:04 UNF HOLLYOAK, Matthew (1) (Sebastian Bianchi) - shot in close off corner
4. 80:30 UCF Feigenbaum, Chris (1) (Yaron Bacher) - free kick to deflection in close
Shots: UNF 9, UCF 20
Saves: UNF 6 (two with 3) UCF 3 (Sean Johnson 3)
Corner kicks: UNF 5, UCF 3
Offsides: UNF 0, UCF 2
Fouls: UNF 10, UCF 10