No. 19 UCF vs. No. 20 UConn |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The No. 19 UCF men’s soccer team kicks off their three-game homestand against No. 20 UConn Friday afternoon at 4 p.m. at the UCF Soccer Stadium.
The match will be featured live on ESPNU/ESPN3 and live stats will also be available.
UCF (8-2-1; 2-1) is coming off their second straight American Athletic Conference win after taking down Tulsa, 4-3. Cal Jennings netted his 13th and 14th goal in the win to garner four points on the night. Hattabiou Barry notched his second goal in conference play and added an assist, while Yoni Sorokin converted the Knights’ second penalty kick of the season for his first goal of the season as UCF posted 11 points.
THE OPPONENT
- UConn is leading all conference opponents in points earned in conference play with seven. The Knights are trailing by just one point.
- This season, the Huskies are 7-2-1 overall and 2-0-1 in conference play and are one of two unbeaten teams in conference contests.
- The Huskies are on a six-game unbeaten streak. In those six games, UConn has won five and tied with South Florida.
- Last season, the Knights and Huskies met once in the regular season (W, 3-2) and once in the American Conference Tournament (W, 1-0). Both contests saw the Knights victorious. Jennings netted two goals in the regular season meeting, and Sorokin scored in the tournament to send the Huskies back to Storrs.
KNIGHT BITES
- SO FRESH AND SO CLEAN - Four freshmen have earned their spots as starters this season with Mauricio Villalobos Vega, Gideon Adu-Peprah, Yanis Leerman, and Andres Hernandez Betancur each becoming regular starters. Adu-Peprah, Leerman, and Hernandez all start on the backline.
- PLAYER OF THE WEEK - The Knights have grabbed six weekly honors from The American (out of seven possible weeks): four offensive player of the week and two Goalkeeper of the Week awards. Weekly award winners include Louis Perez (Aug. 27), Jennings (Sept. 3, 17 & Oct. 8), and Yannik Oettl (Sept. 10 & Oct. 1).
- RANK THAT - UCF has won three straight matches and boasts one of the top offenses in the country breaking into the top 25 polls this week. The Knights are ranked 19th by the United Soccer Coaches Poll and 17th by the Top Drawer after seven weeks of play.
- RECORDS = SHATTERED - Jennings broke the American Athletic Conference single-season points record on Saturday with his two-goal outing against Tulsa. With 32 points so far this season, Jennings snapped the previous record of 31 held by three former standouts: UConn’s Cyle Larin (2013), Temple’s Jorge Gomez Sanchez (2015, 2016) and SMU’s Garrett McLaughlin (2017). With 14 goals, Jennings enters the week tied for the American single-season record.
- IT’S LONELY AT THE TOP - UCF continues to dominate The American as they pace the conference in 10 categories. The Knights have controlled the offensive stats the entire season.
SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2018 campaign are on sale now. Fans looking to purchase tickets can call (407) 823-1000 or visit UCFKnights.com to secure them today. For men's soccer tickets CLICK HERE.
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