Oct. 19, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF women's soccer team was determined not to go to overtime for the fifth-straight match, scoring four first-half goals en route to a 6-0 victory over Houston Sunday at the UCF Soccer Complex. The six goals were the most the Knights (9-4-3, 4-2-2) scored in a match since a 9-0 win vs. Lipscomb in 2004.
Junior Brianna Schooley (Coral Springs, Fla.) set a career-high with six points Sunday, scoring twice and adding a pair of assists. Classmate Yvonne George (Winter Springs, Fla.), meanwhile, notched a season-best five points on a pair of goals and one helper.
"I've been working hard to get a goal all year," said Schooley. "I was excited to finally get it. Today was a very fun game to be a part of. I thought the team held the ball very well and we worked together. We were hungry for this win."
Making her first start in net, senior Jessie Gardner (Sarasota, Fla.) helped UCF record its largest shutout victory in four seasons in Conference USA. She played just over 84 minutes and made four saves vs. the Cougars (5-9-1, 1-6-1). Junior Lynzee Lee (Kailspell, Mont.) completed the shutout by making one save in 5:24 of work.
"It felt great (to get the shutout)," said Gardner. "The coaches told me last week that I would get to play on Sunday. So I got mentally ready, and I knew this team wouldn't have a problem because we have great defenders. Offensively we were amazing today. All of those goals were perfect, their goalkeeper didn't have much of a chance because our forwards were too good."
After outshooting Houston 16-1 in the first half, UCF finished with a 29-11 cushion in the shot department, the most attempts since 36 shots vs. UTEP in 2007.
The first chance of the match came at the feet of Schooley. Taking a pass from senior Danielle Dos Santos (Campinas, Brazil), Schooley evaded a defender in the box but saw her shot glance off the right post. But it didn't take long for the Knights to have another opportunity, as they started to have numerous corner kicks.
On the Knights' second corner in the seventh minute, junior Becca Thomas (Burlington, Wash.) hooked up with dos Santos, yet her back was to the goal. That did not stop her from attempting a bicycle kick, which a Houston back had to make the save on since UH keeper Shelby Scott was on the opposite side of the net. The rebound, however, went straight to junior Courtney Whidden (Palm Harbor, Fla.) and she easily slammed it home for her fourth goal of the season.
Not satisfied with a one-goal margin, UCF made it 2-0 in the 26th minute thanks to a perfect pass from Thomas. Controlling the action at midfield, Thomas saw George hoping for a breakaway and sent a pass just over the Cougar defense. George was able to stay onside and as soon as the ball was airborne, she found herself all alone with the keeper. One quick move to the left, and George had it by herself for her first goal of the day and Thomas' second assist.
The half was far from over, and UCF struck for two more goals in a 39-second span in the 34th minute. Similar to goal No. 2, Schooley connected with a pass through the defense to sophomore Amanda Martorana (Middleburg, Fla.). She also managed to beat Scott in front of the net and had little trouble scoring her fourth goal of 2008. While the fans were still celebrating, Schooley gained possession right away and this time did not take aim at the posts, instead she went top shelf from 20 yards for the unassisted marker and a 4-0 cushion entering halftime.
Houston provided Gardner with some action in the second half, ripping four shots on goal, but the UCF netminder continuously put herself in position to keep the Cougars off the board. With the match already out of reach for UH, Schooley picked up another assist on George's fourth goal of the year in the 85th minute on an attempt that glanced off Scott's glove and into the top right corner. George and dos Santos then set up the sixth and final goal in the 86th minute, when Schooley placed another ball under the crossbar from 12 yards out.
The home schedule wraps up for UCF when it hosts SMU on senior night Friday at 7 p.m.
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.
Postgame Notes
Houston (5-9-1, 1-6-1) - 0
UCF (9-4-3, 4-2-2) - 6
Goals: UCF Courtney Whidden (4) 7th, Yvonne George (3) 26th, Amanda Martorana (4) 34th, Brianna Schooley (1) 34th, UCF Yvonne George (4) 85th, UCF Brianna Schooley (2) 86th
-The Knights had 16 shots in the first half alone. In nine matches this year, they didn't have 16 shots in the entire game.
-Of UCF's 29 shots, 18 of them were on goal.
-UCF had six corners in the opening half and eight for the match. Houston received two corner kicks on Sunday.
-Amanda Martorana now has four goals this season. She had one goal as a freshman in 2007.
-The Knights have now shut out an opponent six times this year.
-Yvonne George improved her season-point total to 15 points on four goals and seven assists.
-Brianna Schooley posted a game-high six shots, half of those were on net.
-Becca Thomas and Danielle Dos Santos each collected two assists.
-The Knights committed only four fouls vs. the Cougars.
-Before Sunday, UCF had scored over two goals in a match only once this year (4-0 win vs. Marshall Oct. 3).