ORLANDO – On the heels of garnering its top two national ranking in Tuesday’s release, the No. 2 UCF men’s soccer team is set for its next home match Saturday evening, when the squad will welcome the Georgia Southern Eagles to the UCF Soccer Complex.
The Knights maintained their No. 3 ranking for the previous two weeks in the United Soccer Coaches national top 25 polls. After its win against Kentucky Sept. 29, UCF climbed to a No. 2 ranking in the week six poll, marking the fifth consecutive week the Knights received a top 10 slot by the organization.
The No. 2 ranking is also the highest ranking of any athletic program in the school’s history. The Knights earned a No. 2 spot in the NCAA’s second official RPI rankings released Monday as well, joined by Top Drawer Soccer’s week six No. 2 ranking. They also remained at No. 7 in College Soccer News’ latest poll.
The Knights return from the road with their first Sun Belt Conference win against Kentucky Sept. 29, a 1-0 decision that marked the team’s second shutout victory of the campaign and the 150th victory in the 15-plus-year career of head coach Scott Calabrese.
UCF’s 1-0 road win, which marked the first Sun Belt Conference victory in team history, also represented the first meeting between the programs as Sun Belt Conference members. In 12 all-time matchups, the Knights’ one-goal win boosted the team’s record against Kentucky to 7-3-2.
Playing on his 22nd birthday, Saku Heiskanen scored Knights’ lone goal, while UCF’s defensive end held strong, preventing the Wildcats from scoring and limiting the squad to nine total shot attempts, including just three on goal.
Entering the Knights’ Saturday tilt, the team has surrendered one or fewer goals six times in eight matches this season and three times in the previous four. Netminder Javier Muñoz boosted his save percentage to .735 with a trio of saves in the winning effort as well.
Georgia Southern visits the Knights in a match that represents the second at home in Sun Belt Conference play. The Eagles bring with them a 1-4-5 season record accompanied by a conference mark of 0-1-2.
The team is, most recently, coming off a loss against top-ranked Marshall by a 3-1 decision Oct. 1, following four consecutive draws, including scoreless ties in both of their first two Sun Belt matches against Coastal Carolina and then-No. 2 West Virginia. Sophomore forward Jack Ireland, in his second season with Georgia Southern, represents the squad’s leading scorer thus far, having scored the first two goals of his collegiate career, equating to a total of four points.
On the other end, starting netminder Nate Martinez has represented one of the more consistent goalkeepers in the Sun Belt through 10 matches, as his 900 minutes are good for a share of third-most in the conference.
Martinez has also notched a .900 goals-against average, good for a tie for third-best in the Sun Belt, and his .775 save percentage ranks third-best as well. The sophomore’s four shutouts are also good for a tie for third-most in the conference, and 18th in the nation.
Kickoff for the match is slated for 7 p.m. Friday from the UCF Soccer Complex.