Oct. 26, 2008
TULSA, Okla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Freshman Aline Reis (Campinas, Brazil) made four saves while three different players tallied goals to help the UCF women's soccer team blank Tulsa, 3-0, in Oklahoma Sunday. It was the Knights' third-consecutive shutout victory as they improved to 11-4-3 overall and 6-2-2 in Conference USA.
UCF still remains in contention for the C-USA regular-season title. Sitting in third place with 20 points, the Knights trail only East Carolina and Memphis which are tied with 22 points apiece. All 12 league schools have just one match left before the C-USA Championship Nov. 5-9.
"It was a tough game with the wind blowing pretty strong, but the good thing about it was that we scored twice against the wind," said head coach Amanda Cromwell. "Our goals were nice and the defense played well. We knew we had to do our part to stay in the running for the conference title, and we were able to move into third today. Next week we have to worry about our game and then we'll see what happens from there."
Reis moved her season shutout total to six with her performance against the Golden Hurricane (7-9-3, 2-6-2). The Knights outshot Tulsa, 12-5, with senior Danielle Dos Santos (Campinas, Brazil), junior Courtney Whidden (Palm Harbor, Fla.) and freshman Katie Jackson (Satellite Beach, Fla.) all scoring goals.
"I was looking at the stats the other day and couldn't believe we didn't have any player over four goals coming into the weekend," admitted Cromwell. "But we have so many players with at least two goals. It's hard for other teams to defend us because they can't focus on just one person. Everybody is stepping up and being mentally strong. And those who are not starters want to have an impact so they are ready to play as soon as they come into a match."
In the second half of the season, UCF's offense has been peppering opposing teams, and Sunday's match continued that trend. The Black and Gold rattled off six unanswered shots in the first 30:48 of the opening stanza, forcing Tulsa keeper Kendall Harclerode to make four saves during that stretch. It was the seventh shot that mattered most as the Knights finally got one into the mesh.
With help from seniors Hanna Wilde (Westlake, Ohio) and dos Santos, Whidden collected her fifth goal of the year into the left side of the net in the 31st minute for the 1-0 lead. The Knights went on to hold the Golden Hurricane to zero shots in the first half.
Tulsa may have started making Reis work in the final frame, yet it was the Knights who kept lighting up the scoreboard. One of the Knights most impressive offensive threats lately, dos Santos put away her fourth goal of 2008 on a marker in the 80th minute. To seal the victory, Jackson notched her third of the season in the 86th minute on a 30-yard shot off a pass from freshman Stacie Hubbard (Jacksonville, Fla.).
UCF's regular-season comes to a close Friday when it travels to Hattiesburg, Miss., to face Southern Miss at 4 p.m. ET.
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
UCF (11-4-3, 6-2-2) - 3
TULSA (7-9-3, 2-6-2) - 0
Goals: UCF Courtney Whidden (5) 31st, UCF Danielle Dos Santos (4) 80th, UCF Katie Jackson (3) 86th - UCF outscored the opposition 10-0 in its last three matches.
- Aline Reis increased her save total to 82 on the year, which are tied for ninth on the single-season list with Alyssa O'Brien (1996).
- Yvonne George and Becca Thomas both had a match-high three shots.
- The Knights also shut out three-straight foes earlier in the year when they blanked Florida, Hartford and Pacific.
- Danielle Dos Santos now has four assists this year, while Hanna Wilde has earned three helpers on the season.
- Stacie Hubbard and Katie Jackson also picked up assists against Tulsa.