Nov. 2, 2008

Updated Men's Soccer Standings

IRVING, Texas - No. 9 Tulsa clinched the Golden Hurricane’s second Conference USA Regular Season Championship with a 0-0 double-overtime tie with South Carolina in the final regular season league game. TU closed out league play with a 7-0-1 mark, giving TU its second-straight season without a loss in league play. Tulsa won all seven contests in the month of October, and hasn’t lost a game in 11 games, dating back to Sept. 19.

In other action, Kentucky locked up the second seed in the upcoming C-USA Men’s Soccer Championship with a 2-1 over SMU on Sunday. The match will be shown on tape delay on CBS College Sports this Tuesday at 7 p.m. CT. Florida International kept its hopes alive for a tournament spot with a 2-1 win over UAB, while Marshall downed Memphis also by a score of 2-1.

No. 9 TULSA 0, SOUTH CAROLINA 0 (2OT)
No. 9 Tulsa clinched the Conference USA Regular Season Championship on Saturday night with a 0-0 double-overtime tie with South Carolina at the Hurricane Soccer & Track Stadium. The Golden Hurricane owns a 12-3-2 overall record and closed out league play with a 7-0-1 mark, while USC moved to 7-5-4 on the season and 2-2-3 in C-USA.

This is the second-straight regular-season league title for TU, as Tulsa claimed both the regular season and tournament championships last season. Tulsa has also not had a loss in league play in two seasons, spanning 16 games.

Both teams had their chances in the 110 minutes, as Tulsa had a 24-17 advantage in shots, but it was the Gamecocks who held a 7-4 lead in shots on goal. Ashley McInnes and Austin Neil led the Golden Hurricane with four shots each, while Jeovahnni Sandez had three attempts in the contest.

Sam Arthur and Blake Brettschneider both collected five shots for the Gamecocks.

Jimmy Maurer collected four saves in the match as he recorded his conference-leading eighth shutout. It was the first time Tulsa was shutout at home since a 3-0 loss to Kentucky on Nov. 3, 2006 in the Conference USA tournament semifinal.

Tyrel Lacey logged all 110 minutes in goal and picked up four saves for his sixth shutout on the season, including five of the last six contests. He has 65 saves on the year and has given up just 11 goals for a 0.63 goals-against average and a .855 saves percentage.

For more information, visit the Tulsa website and the South Carolina website.

KENTUCKY 2, SMU 1
For the second consecutive match, the Kentucky allowed a goal just minutes into the game and rebounded with a come-from-behind win for the fourth time in the last five matches, getting the game winner from defender Stephen Beiro in the 44th minute, to lift the red-hot Wildcats to a 2-1 win over SMU, on Sunday afternoon at Wescott Field.

Kentucky sits one win shy of equaling the school record for the most conference wins in a season, a 7-1 mark set in 1998 while competing in the Mid American Conference. UK’s 10 wins on the year marks the 13th time in the history of the program the Wildcats have posted 10 or more wins. UK hasn’t achieved 10 total wins in a season just five times all-time and only twice in the last 11 years.

The Wildcats are in the midst of a historic season that has seen just four losses, with three coming on the road at top-25 foes (No. 7 UC Santa Barbara, No. 24 Cal Poly and No. 14 Tulsa). UK has posted memorable results in wins over No. 13 Michigan, No. 22 SMU and No. 18 South Carolina, in addition to a 1-1 comeback draw at RPI-leading Indiana on Wednesday, the 14th-ranked team in the country.

The Wildcats have totaled 35 goals on the year – good for seventh-best all-time total in Kentucky annals. UK has not lost in six consecutive games, one shy of the school record for the longest unbeaten streak in the 18-year history of the program.

UK has secured second place in the league with the upset win, as No. 8 Tulsa claimed the regular season conference championship with a scoreless tie vs. South Carolina on Saturday. UK’s win gives them a school-best 18 total league points with one conference game remaining. With six C-USA wins in 2008, UK has posted its most wins in the rugged conference since joining as an affiliate member before the 2005 campaign.

The Wildcats owned one all-time victory over the tradition-rich Mustangs entering Sunday, a 2-1 comeback win in 2007 at the UK Soccer Complex, with SMU ranked No. 1 nationally at the time of the win. UK improved its record to 2-5 all-time vs. SMU, with wins in two consecutive matches, both nationally televised on CBS College Sports. SMU was riding a two-game winning streak entering Sunday, with dominating 2-0 wins at UAB and UCF.

Beiro and Chad Hagerty netted goals, with Hagerty’s goal in the 16th minute erasing an early 1-0 SMU lead after the Wildcats allowed a goal in the second minute.

SMU got a goal in the second minute from Arthur Ivo, his third goal of the season. Diogo de Almeida and Dane Saintus hooked up with Ivo on the goal from inside the penalty box, with de Almeida notching his second assist and Saintus’ third of the year.

UK goalkeeper Dan Williams, a three-year starter in between the pipes for the Wildcats, totaled three saves while facing 11 total SMU shots. Hagerty and Michael Strong each led UK with two shots fired. SMU had a 5-2 advantage in corners and a 11-10 advantage in total shots, getting nabbed for one offsides call.

For more, check out the SMU website and the Kentucky website.

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL 2, UAB 1
FIU’s men’s soccer team kept their Conference USA Tournament hopes alive with a 2-1 win over UAB at University Park.

The Golden Panthers jumped out to the early lead on a goal on a header Cory Kendall in the 22nd minute on a ball played into the box from Diego Tamburus.

UAB would answer back early in the second half when Kevin Sawchak put back a rebound in the 50th minute. The match would not remain tied for long as FIU would score the game-winner less than ten minutes later on a header by Phill Fisher on a ball played in from Tamburus. The Blazers would have a great opportunity in the waning moments but it was thwarted on a diving save by FIU keeper Shane Lopez.

More info is available on the FIU website and the Memphis website.

FLORIDA ATLANTIC 1, UCF 0
With a goal with 24 seconds left, Darnell King gave visiting Florida Atlantic a 1-0 victory over UCF in non-conference soccer action Saturday night at the UCF Soccer Complex. The loss put a damper on "Senior Night" for the Knights, as Chris Anduar, Bryan Collier and Ryan Roushandel were honored in their final home game at UCF.

With overtime seeming imminent late in the contest, FAU's Gianni Piccoletti sent a through ball into the box to King, who made a nice finish to get a shot from 10 yards out past UCF keeper Sean Johnson to the far post. It was King's second marker of the season.

Led by four shots from sophomore Yaron Bacher and three from Collier, UCF outshot the Owls 13-8 in the game. Phillip Lamarre made five saves to earn the win for FAU in goal while Johnson stopped two shots for the Knights.

The two teams went to the halftime break scoreless after an opening period in which UCF outshot the Owls 8-6. Sophomore Yaron Bacher fired three shots in the half and Collier added a pair. In the 21st minute, freshman Kevan George found Collier with a through ball, but FAU keeper Phillip Lamarre charged out and made a save.

With the home slate of games behind them, UCF will travel to Columbia, S.C. for its regular-season and Conference USA finale on Friday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.

For more on UCF soccer, visit the UCF website.