ORLANDO – For the second time in the No. 2 UCF men’s soccer team’s last two matches, the program has seen a Knight recognized by the Sun Belt for his efforts in contributing to a shutout win.
Following the team’s 2-0 victory over the Georgia Southern Eagles Oct. 7, fifth year midfielder Robbie Soronellas has been tabbed as the conference’s Defensive Player of the Week, the Sun Belt announced Tuesday.
Soronellas becomes the third Knight to garner a weekly award by the Sun Belt this fall and the second in as many weeks, joining defender Zane Bubb (Sept. 5) and goalkeeper Juanvi Muñoz (Oct. 3). All three took home the conference’s defensive honors.
The award also represents the first conference weekly recognition won by Soronellas in his collegiate career, and the second overall conference recognition he has earned, joining his unanimous selection to the ASUN All-Freshman team following his freshman campaign at North Florida in 2019.
The Lutz, Florida, native contributed on both ends of the field in helping lead the Knights to their second straight clean sheet Saturday night, recording the primary assist on forward Lucca Dourado’s first goal of the evening.
Soronellas collected a pass from fellow midfielder AJ Seals across midfield and sent the ball between a pair of Eagles defenders to Dourado, who quickly put the Knights on the board first with a goal into lower left corner past Georgia Southern netminder Nate Martinez.
He also played a key role in the Knights’ defensive efforts, helping limit the Eagles to only four total shot attempts throughout the match, none of which found Muñoz’s net. Soronellas completed 90 of 98 total passes on the night, including 16 defensive recoveries, seven of which occurred on Georgia Southern’s defensive end.
On the heels of the team’s second consecutive shutout win and third of the season, Soronellas and the Knights (6-1-2, 2-1-1 SBC) will embark on a brief road trip to Norfolk, Virginia for a Saturday evening tilt against the Old Dominion Monarchs (5-1-5, 2-1-1 SBC) Oct. 14. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. from the ODU Soccer Complex.
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