Nov. 6, 2009
By Jared Greenbaum
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF men's soccer team will conclude its regular season at home, hosting Conference USA opponent and 12th-ranked Tulsa on Saturday night. The Knights (6-6-3, 2-4-1 C-USA) will play the Golden Hurricane (10-4-2, 5-1-1 C-USA) at the UCF Soccer Complex at 7:30 p.m.
UCF is coming off of a 3-3, double-overtime tie against SMU. The Knights took an early lead and held on for the majority of the game. Despite a 3-1 UCF lead near the end of the game, the Mustangs rallied back quickly and netted two goals in the final five minutes to send the match into overtime. Neither team could find the back of the net in both overtime periods, ending the game in a draw.
The match marked the first goal for freshman Malcolm Reed (Summerville, S.C.), who put away a header from a Nicholas Robson (Auckland, New Zealand) corner kick in the first minute of the game. In the 12th minute of the game, junior Yaron Bacher (Atlanta, Ga.) ripped his fourth goal of the season from just outside the 18-yard box. Bacher's fourth goal doubles his 2008 season total of two. UCF's third and final goal came from a Robson free kick in the 81st minute. The goal was his second in two games and team-high sixth of the season. With six goals and six assists during his rookie campaign, Robson has a team-high 18 points.
Tulsa received goals from Kilian Poeschk and Ashley McInnes as the Golden Hurricane recently defeated C-USA opponent Memphis 2-0. Senior forward Kilian Poeschk was named Conference USA Offensive player of the Week for his efforts. If Tulsa wins the contest they will claim the third-straight regular season title and will host the Con¬ference USA Championship, but if they lose, the winner of the Marshall-UAB contest will claim the title and will host the tournament. Tulsa, UAB, Marshall and Kentucky have claimed the four berths for the postseason tournament.
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.