Oct. 4, 2009
By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
GREENVILLE, N.C. (UCFAthletics.com) - A pair of second-half goals from senior Yvonne George and freshman Nicolette Radovcic gave the No. 21 UCF women's soccer team a 2-0 victory at East Carolina (7-3-2, 2-2-0) Sunday. The Knights ended up sweeping its weekend road trip, including a 4-1 win at Marshall Oct. 2, to stretch their record to 8-3-1 overall and 3-1-0 in Conference USA.
"ECU is a very strong team and well organized," said head coach Amanda Cromwell. "But we were able to come out in the second half more creative in the attacking third. Our front-runners were very patient and took more chances in 1v1 situations after halftime. We played two very talented teams this weekend and it was great to get a couple of victories."
After senior Lynzee Lee worked 90 minutes in net to defeat Marshall, sophomore Aline Reis took over Sunday and promptly made three saves for her fourth shutout of 2009. Combined, Lee and Reis have limited opponents to just four goals in UCF's last nine games.
Reis and ECU keeper Berit Hansen traded saves early in the first half before the Black and Gold fired off five-unanswered shots later in the stanza. Although holding a 6-2 advantage in shots through one period, UCF remained scoreless.
George and senior Courtney Whidden both put shots on goal to kick off the second half only to see Hansen get in the way each time. However the ECU netminder could not handle a shot from George in the 60th minute as the UCF forward registered her third goal of the year, with Whidden earning an assist, to put the Knights on top 1-0
The Knights were not willing to hold on to just a one-goal cushion, and added the important insurance marker when Radovcic posted her second goal of the campaign in the 80th minute. George and Whidden each collected assists on the clinching tally, sending UCF home with a two-game winning streak.
UCF will return to campus for a pair of C-USA matches next weekend when it welcomes UTEP to town Friday at 7 p.m. and Colorado College to Orlando Sunday at 12 p.m. Admission to all contests at the UCF Soccer Complex is free.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to 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 UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Postgame Notes
No. 21 UCF (8-3-1, 3-1-0) - 2
East Carolina (7-3-2, 2-2-0) - 0
Goals: UCF Yvonne George (3) 60th, UCF Nicolette Radovcic (2) 80th
-With the win, UCF improved to 5-0-2 all-time against the Pirates.
-UCF also moved into a tie for first place in Conference USA.
-The Knights outshot ECU, 13-6. It was the sixth-straight game they posted more shots than their opponent.
-In all, 10 of the Knights' 13 attempts were on goal.
-UCF also finished with more corner kicks, posting a 6-3 margin.
-Senior Courtney Whidden notched two assists in a match for the first time in her career.
-Whidden had a game-high three shots Sunday, and all three of them were on net.
-Senior Yvonne George completed her afternoon with a season-high three points on a goal and an assist.