Sept. 22, 2012
="" alt="Twitter Logo" border="0" class="imported"> ="" alt="Facebook Logo" border="0" class="imported"> UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
FORT MYERS, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - A late goal by Deshorn Brown allowed the UCF men's soccer team to earn a 2-2 double-overtime draw at Florida Gulf Coast Saturday. With the Knights trailing 2-1 at the FGCU Soccer Complex, Brown's header off a feed from Omar Vallejo and A.J. Nelson in the 87th minute tied the match.
UCF moved to 2-2-2 with the tie, while the Eagles went to 3-1-1. Both teams have been among the top programs in Florida in the last few years. UCF is currently ranked 33rd in TopDrawerSoccer.com's Tournament 48 Rankings, with the Eagles close behind at No. 38.
"Our players showed grit. They didn't give up. There was no quit," UCF head coach Bryan Cunningham said. "All week we have been preaching hard work and discipline. To tie a team like Florida Gulf Coast on the road says a lot about our potential moving forward."
The Knights led for much of the first half after Jeff Michaud scored his first career goal in the 17th minute off an assist from Ben Hunt. Just after halftime, the hosts answered with a pair of goals and Daniel Stanese's score in the 53rd minute gave the Eagles a 2-1 advantage.
"We got a great early goal and were managing the game well," Cunningham said. "Then playing a man down, we gave up two goals back-to-back. But our guys were disciplined. Everyone played their role very well."
Brown's goal was his fifth of the year. Each team played the last 53 minutes of the match with 10 men as UCF's Romario Williams and the Eagles' Felipe DeSousa earned two yellow cards. Sebastian Evers played all 110 minutes in goal for UCF and finished with a pair of saves. Nelson and Andrew Quintana, a pair of seniors, also went the distance for the Knights.
The contest was the fourth on the road this season for the Knights.
The Knights and Florida Gulf Coast met twice last year with the Eagles recording a regular-season win in Orlando and host UCF posting a double-overtime triumph in the first round of the NCAA Championship.
UCF will return to action Wednesday for a big home match against No. 5 Charlotte. The 49ers finished as the national runner-up in 2011. The contest at the UCF Soccer Complex will begin at 7 p.m.