ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - UCF earned a 1-1 draw on Sunday morning against a side composed of Orlando City reserves and OCB players at Sylvan Lake Park in Sanford. Former Knight Hadji Barry played the full 90 minutes against UCF, which was facing a side the included OCB players for the second time in three weeks.
"I was certainly pleased with our effort," said head coach Bryan Cunningham. "It was a good culmination of everything that we have been working on from winter break. Our possession was really good and had some great attacking chances. Defensively, we did really well and did somethings that we have been trying to implement. All in all, I told the players afterwards that the result was definitely due to their effort and determination these last two weeks."
The Knights scored about mid-way through the first half when Anton Delwer capitalized on a Lions' mistake and found the back of the net. Orlando City knotted the match early in the second as Harrison Heath converted a penalty kick.
"I enjoyed the game, I thought the UCF lads worked really hard, so it was a really good test for us," Orlando City Head Coach Adrian Heath told OrlandoCitySC.com following the match.
Both teams exchanged opportunities during the second half, but neither club was unable to break through as the contest finished in a 1-1 draw.
"Our team composed of freshmen and sophomores is maturing and the players have been very professional in their approach," Cunningham added. "The experience that they are gathering has been very important. It is a big step up when you are playing these caliber of professional teams."
Earlier in the spring, UCF faced OCB at home and fell 3-0, but regrouped the next week and played a tremendous match against the first team from the New York Red Bulls in a 5-2 defeat.
"We set up the schedule, so that we have a nice little break before going into our overall spring break," Cunningham said. "The most important thing is to come back after spring break and be ready and determined to put forth that same effort and intensity that we had against the pro teams."
The Knights are next in action on Mar. 19 in Bradenton, Fla., against the U-17 United States Youth National Team at 10 a.m. UCF rounds out the spring slate with home matches against Stetson on Mar. 25 at 11 a.m. and Florida Southern on Apr. 1 at 7 p.m.