Oct. 15, 2010
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By Jared Greenbaum
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - After battling to a 1-1 tie against Kentucky to remain unbeaten in Conference USA, the No. 22 UCF men's soccer team returns to action against No.20 South Carolina on Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. The matchup marks the Knights' sixth conference game in a row, and second of three-straight road games.
UCF remains the only team in C-USA without a loss this season in league play, posting a mark of 4-0-1. The last loss the Knights suffered came on Sept. 17 at UMass. That 2-1 loss to the Minutemen was also the last time that UCF failed to score at least two goals in a game before the 1-1 draw with the Wildcats Wednesday night.
With the Knights falling behind early in the game, it took until the 73rd minute for Warren Creavalle (Acworth, Ga.) to tie the game. The goal came on a brilliant move around two Kentucky defenders before sliding the ball into the far corner for the equalizer.
South Carolina plays host to the Knights Saturday night ranked No. 20 in the nation by Soccer America. The Gamecocks are 7-3-1 overall and 2-1 in C-USA. The six points in league play are good for third in the conference standings.
Notes: On Top of the Conference: The Knights are currently 4-0-1 in C-USA play, giving the team 13 points and the top spot in the conference standings.
Back-to-Back: Creavalle's goal against Kentucky marked his third of the season and second in as many games. Eduardo Jimenez (San Juan, Puerto Rico) collected an assist on the goal, giving him points in each of the last three games, including assists in the last two contests following his first career goal last week against FIU.
Defensive Doyle: Goalkeeper Shawn Doyle (Ft. Myers, Fla.) stopped a season-high seven shots in the tie at Kentucky. This week, Doyle was named the C-USA Defender of the Week after consecutive shutout wins over FIU and Memphis.
Getting Goals: In 11 games this season, UCF has outscored its opponents by a margin of 24-7. The 17-goal margin is the best amongst C-USA schools this season. In contrast to the Knights' goal discrepancies, the Gamecocks have scored 12 goals, while also allowing 12 goals in 2010 on their way to a winning record.
Help Me Out: The Knights have recorded 26 assists on their 24 goals in 2010. Sophomore Nik Robson (Auckland, New Zealand) and junior Spencer Scott (Palm City, Fla.) lead the team with seven and five assists, respectively.
Team Leader: Robson leads the Knights in all offensive categories and ranks amongst the nation's top offensive players. The sophomore has recorded seven goals and seven assists, good for a conference-leading 21 points. Against Kentucky, Robson had his seven-game point streak snapped as he was held off the score sheet for the first time since a 1-0 loss to UNC-Wilmington on Sept. 10.
No Easy Goals: The Knights have allowed only seven goals in 11 games, and boast the lowest goals-against average in the conference (0.62). All-Time Record: UCF is 1-5-3 against South Carolina all-time. The last meeting came a season ago in 2009 and ended with a 3-1 Gamecocks' victory.