Nov. 20, 2010
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By Pat Salvas
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Just two days ago, the UCF men's soccer team claimed arguably its biggest win in program history. The Knights (12-4-3), hosting an NCAA Tournament game for the first time, dominated their in-state rivals from USF with a 3-0 victory, sending a message to the rest of the soccer community that UCF was a program on the rise. That win over the Bulls earned the Knights a trip to Ann Arbor to take on No. 10 Michigan Sunday at 2 p.m.
Sophomore Nik Robson (Auckland, New Zealand) continued his stellar sophomore campaign as he scored his tenth goal of the season on a penalty kick in the final minute of the first half. Fellow New Zealand native and sophomore Ben Hunt (Auckland, New Zealand) tallied the game winner just 10 minutes before on a header inside the far post.
Sophomore goalkeeper Shawn Doyle (Ft. Myers, Fla.) earned his eighth shutout of the season, making three saves in the game. This season, Doyle recorded seven shutouts in nine games at the UCF Soccer Complex en route to posting an 8-1 home mark. The only non-shutout home win this season? That would be the 2-1 victory over No. 5 SMU on Oct. 2; the only regular season loss of the year for the Mustangs.
And perhaps the most fitting end for the Knights on Thursday came with a goal from senior captain Yaron Bacher (Atlanta, Ga.) in the second half. Bacher, more known for his ability to shutdown opposing offensive players, scored a brilliant goal on a 25-yard freekick in the 65th minute of play. In the final home game of his career, Bacher scored the goal that sealed his first NCAA Tournament win; a perfect ending to the Knights' victory.
All the momentum from the win over the Bulls will have to travel with the team for Sunday's game in Ann Arbor. UCF and Michigan will play the first NCAA Tournament game in the new U-M Soccer Stadium, opened for this season. Sunday also marks the first-ever matchup between the two soccer programs.
The Wolverines earned the No. 10 seed and a bye into the second round with a 14-4-3 record this season and a Big Ten Tournament Championship. This year's Big Ten Conference Tournament was played at Penn State, a team Michigan would eventually face in the finals. Squaring off with the home team in a big game did not phase the Wolverines as they took the league title with an impressive 4-1 win.
UCF will use that same mentality Sunday when they go into a hostile environment with the season on the line. The win over the Bulls was a good start, but also immediately after the game ended it was on to the next game and no further for the Knights. The board in the locker room says "Michigan" and nothing else. That's because the season comes down to Michigan, any other opponent after that will have to wait until Sunday night.
Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010 - 2 p.m.
UCF Knights (12-4-3)
at No. 10 Michigan Wolverines (14-4-3)
U-M Soccer Stadium - Ann Arbor, Mich.
NCAA Tournament Second Round
Sunday's Matchup
The UCF men's soccer team plays in the second round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament Sunday when it travels to take on No. 10 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Knights advanced to the second round after defeating instate rival USF, 3-0, Thursday in the first round at the UCF Soccer Complex. Michigan earned a bye into the second round and a home game with a strong season and a conference tournament championship.
Last Time Out...
In the Knights' last game, the team dismantled USF in the NCAA Tournament First Round, 3-0. The game was the first national postseason contest to be played at the UCF Soccer Complex and the Black and Gold did not disappoint its fans as it advanced to the second round with the convincing three-goal win.
Scouting the Wolverines
Michigan earned a bye and the No. 10 seed with a 14-4-3 record this season. The Wolverines followed a strong regular season with a run that eventually led to a Big Ten Championships title with a 4-1 win over Penn State in College Station. Michigan is led by the top scoring player in the nation Saad Sonny and his 40 points on 18 goals. Both those figures are the most amongst all Division I players.
Common Opponents
The Wolverines and Knights only had one common opponent this season. Both teams played Kentucky once in 2010. Conference USA foes, the Knights and Wildcats battled to a 1-1 tie in Lexington on Oct. 13. Michigan hosted Kentucky on Sept. 22 with the Wolverines taking a 3-2 overtime win as Saad completed the hat trick with the game winner.
Keeps Going
Sophomore Nik Robson scored his team-leading 10th goal of the season Thursday night on a penalty kick in the final minute of the first half. Robson leads all C-USA players this season in points and goals and became the first UCF player to score 10 goals in a season since 1999.
Clean Sheet
UCF blanked its eighth opponent of the season with the shutout of USF Thursday night. The win also marked the seventh time in 2010 that an opponent failed to score at the UCF Soccer Complex. Sophomore Shawn Doyle has played every minute in the UCF net this season, earning all eight shutouts for the Knights. His goals-against (0.76) and save percentage (.817) figures are also tops amongst all goalkeepers in the C-USA.
A Defender's Blast
Senior Captain Yaron Bacher capped the game with a beautiful 25-yard freekick in the 65th minute to put UCF up by three, all but sealing the win. Bacher's only other goal came in the first game of the season, a 5-0 victory over Jacksonville. In his final season in a Knights uniform, Bacher scored in the home opener and the final home game in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.
Loose Ends
Not to be overlooked, sophomore Ben Hunt scored the eventual game-winning goal with a header in the 35th minute on a throw-in from Cameron Cooksey (Marietta, Ga.)...Seven different players scored game-winning goals this season. Team leader in goals Nik Robson was not one of them. Spencer Scott (Palm City, Fla.) led all UCF players with three winners, including the biggest of the season against No. 5 SMU on Oct. 2 in Orlando...The Knights finished the season 8-1 on their home field...UCF is making its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010, while the Wolverines will also be making just their fourth appearance all-time...The Knights have only reached the second round once before, in 2004, as they fell at Wake Forest...UCF and Michigan have never played before.