#8 UCF vs. #5 SMU NCAA Tournament - Third Round/Sweet 16 November 30, 2019, 8:30 P.M. EST |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – For the third time in the 2019 campaign, the No. 8 UCF men's soccer team is set to square off with the No. 5 SMU Mustangs. The two sides will collide in Dallas for the third round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. EST.
The No. 9 nationally seed Knights will have a chance to travel to No. 8 nationally seeded SMU once again this year, as the teams played to a 3-3 draw in Dallas midway through the regular season. After winning the regular season, UCF fell in the conference tournament championship match on their home pitch to the Mustangs.
The Knights are currently in the midst of their seventh run in the NCAA Tournament, and it is their best yet. With their second round victory on Sunday, the Black and Gold advanced past the second round for the first time in program history.
HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Knights topped the No. 12 Missouri State Bears by a score of 2-1 in overtime in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. After earning a first round bye, SMU defeated the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers by a count of 1-0 in double overtime.
A BUDDING RIVALRY
The high intensity matches between UCF and SMU haven't just occurred this season. Saturday's match will be the seventh time that the two teams will have faced each other in the last three years. They have met three straight times in the conference championship match, with the Mustangs winning all three, two on UCF's home turf. The Knights trail the all-time series by a count of 4-7-6 and are 0-1-1 against SMU this season.
THE OPPONENT
Garrett McLaughlin leads the Mustangs in scoring with 16 goals and 37 points. Just behind him is Eddie Munjoma with 29 points and Knut Ahlander who has tallied 12 assists and 26 points.
Grant Makela will likely tend the net for SMU. He missed some time due to injury but has played in 13 matches and posted a .833 save percentage. He has compiled an 11-1-1 record and allowed 0.82 goals per game.
SMU's lone loss came at the hands of Memphis in double overtime as they fell 4-3 in mid-October.
BY THE NUMBERS
The Mustangs have netted a whopping 3.11 goals per game thus far in 2019. They take an average of 18.1 shots per game and allow 12.2. To compare, the Knights take roughly 16.3 shots per game while surrendering 9.5. Through 19 matches, UCF has posted an average of 2.32 goals per match which is identical to the mark they tallied last season. The Black and Gold still lead the nation in corner kicks with an average of 8.37 per game.
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Follow UCF Men's Soccer on social media on Facebook (/UCFMensSoccer), Twitter (@UCF_MSoccer) and Instagram (@UCF.MSoccer).
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