UCF on the defensive end yielded only six total shot attempts throughout the contest, three in both halves, and a total of three shots on goal.
Junior goalkeeper Juanvi Muñoz, who entered the new season in control of 10th place on the Knights’ all-time goals against average list with a career mark of 1.29, saved two of the three shots Mercer put on goal, and in doing so, surrendered one or fewer goals for the 18th time in 29 career appearances spanning his two-plus year career.
Among the Knights’ Sun Belt Conference mates, UCF joined Old Dominion, South Carolina, No. 8 Marshall, Kentucky and No. 3 West Virginia in earning season-opening victories with at least three goals scored Thursday evening.
The winning result represented the latest in a strong trend under head coach Scott Calabrese of defending the Knights’ home field as well, as UCF’s all-time home record improved to 39-15-8 in Calabrese’s seven-plus seasons at the helm.
When they square off against the Redhawks Sunday evening, the Black and Gold will take part in their fourth matchup in the last two seasons that sees both teams ranked within the United Soccer Coaches top 25, and Seattle also represents the fifth ranked opponent the Knights will have faced in that span.
UCF last season went unbeaten in three of its four matchups against ranked foes, producing a 1-1-2 record against then-No. 1 Marshall, then-No. 4 West Virginia, then-No. 9 Clemson and then-No. 11 FIU. The squad most notably earned a season-opening 2-1 victory over the Tigers last year, a result that helped the team jump into the top 25 rankings for the remainder of the season. The Knights also played to 2-2 draws against both the Panthers and Mountaineers, and fell in a narrow 1-0 contest on the road to the Thundering Herd.
The Knights and Redhawks will meet Sunday evening for the first time in the history of the two programs, with Seattle most recently coming off a dominant 12-4-3 campaign and an NCAA Tournament berth in 2023. The Redhawks went unbeaten against a pair of ranked opponents last year as well, playing to a 2-2 draw against then-No. 14 Denver Sept. 18 before topping the then-No. 20 Washington Huskies by a 3-2 final score Sept. 21.
Seattle enters Sunday’s contest on the heels of a comfortable 4-1 victory over another of UCF’s later 2024 opponents, the South Florida Bulls, in Tampa Thursday evening. Senior forward Jeremy Opong, who finished the 2023 slate with three goals and three assists to total nine points, nearly matched his goal total in his 2024 debut, scoring two of the Redhawks’ four goals.
Graduate students Titus Washington and Lennard Fock accounted for their team’s other two scores, and redshirt junior goalkeeper Charlie Lanphier made three saves on four Bulls shots on goal as well. Fock makes his return to the 2024 squad after netting six goals in his 15 appearances in 2023, a total that represented the second-most on the team only to then-senior forward James Morris’ 10.
Kickoff for the Sunday evening match is slated for 5 p.m. from the UCF Soccer Complex, and will be streamed on ESPN+.
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