| American Athletic Conference Semifinals SMU at #20 UCF Thursday, April 15, 7 p.m. ET WATCH LIVE ON ESPN+ | LIVE STATS |
ORLANDO, Fla. – The No. 20 UCF men's soccer team is set for the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament as they host SMU on Thursday night at 7 p.m. The Black and Gold are looking to punch their fourth straight ticket to The American's championship match.
After securing their third straight regular season title, the Knights earned the right to host the conference tournament on their home pitch at the UCF Soccer Complex. The Black and Gold will be the one seed for the tournament while the Mustangs are the fourth seed. Second-seeded Tulsa will face third-seeded Temple in the other semifinal match which will be played at 4 p.m. on Thursday prior to the start of SMU-UCF.
The Black and Gold enter the tournament on a hot streak as they've been victorious in their last six matches. After a 1-3 start, the Knights rallied from the bottom of the table and have been clicking on both sides of the ball, outscoring their opposition 14-2 during their winning streak. The Black and Gold beat Memphis and SMU twice during their streak and look to make it a third on Thursday night.
Yannik Oettl has played a big part in UCF's run to the top of the table. He has earned four clean sheets over the last five matches and has a total of five shutouts this season. Oettl is third in the nation in save percentage in the NCAA, recording a .905 clip thus far. He's in the top 10 in goals against average and shutouts as well, checking in at No. 8 in goals allowed average with a mark of .492 and is ranked tenth in total shutouts. He was named The American's Goalkeeper of the Year for the third straight season as he is having the best year of his career and is on pace to shatter his personal bests.
Gino Vivi has scored three of the Knights last four goals as he is heating up at the right time. He converted on a breakaway chance to earn the game winner over SMU two weeks ago. Vivi followed that up with a two-goal performance in Memphis, back heeling the opening goal in before icing the match with another midway through the second half. He is tied for the team lead with 10 points, collecting four goals and two assists this season.
The Knights and Mustangs have seen a lot of each other as these two will square off for the sixth time in the last two seasons and the tenth time over the last four. SMU holds an 8-6-6 advantage in the all-time series, but it's been the Black and Gold who have been victorious in the last two meetings. Despite the slight advantage in the all-time series, the Mustangs are just 1-5-2 in their last eight matches against UCF in Orlando. This is the fourth straight year these teams will meet in The American tournament with the previous three tilts occurring in the championship match. UCF will look to earn their first win against the Mustangs in The American tournament as they've historically gone 0-3-1 against them.
The Mustangs have dropped three of their last four matches as they enter the tournament with a record of 5-5 this season after going 18-2-1 last season. Each of those three loses was by a single goal, including their regular season finale ending in a 2-1 loss in overtime against Temple. SMU is 2-3 on the road this season and have lost their last three matches outside of Dallas. Skage Simonsen has scored a goal in team's last two matches and leads the squad with 13 points. Gabriel Costa and Papa Ndoye contribute heavily on the scoresheet as well, each coming into the match with nine points this season.
The first 15 minutes of the match as been an indicator of the match result in nine of ten matches this season. UCF is 6-0 when holding their opponent scoreless over the first 15 and are 1-3 when surrendering a goal in that time frame. Their one comeback victory was over SMU two weeks ago as the Knights surged from behind in the second half after giving up a set piece goal in the third minute. The Black and Gold are unbeaten this season when scoring more than one goal.
TICKETING, MASKING & CAPACITY
All matches for the American Athletic Conference Championship are free to attend; no ticket is required. The UCF Soccer Complex and UCF Athletics recently raised their total fan capacity to 50 percent for each match. Masks are required and must be worn while in the venue and on campus. For more information, please visit the 2020-21 UCF Olympic Sports A-Z Guide which is linked to this preview.
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