Oct. 7, 2007

It was a good day for the home team as hosts Colorado College, Southern Miss, UCF and UTEP all earned shutout wins over their visitors. The Knights and Miners move to the top of the conference standings with a perfect 2-0-0 mark following the opening weekend.

UCF 1, East Carolina 0 (2ot)
A very wet afternoon turned into a memorable day for UCF as the Knights edged East Carolina, 1-0, to stay undefeated at home. Sophomore Yvonne George gave UCF the win with only 58 seconds left in the second overtime period off a pass from Courtney Whidden. Whidden gained control deep in the ECU zone and found George all alone in the right portion of the box. After receiving the pass, George took her time and cranked the game-winner into the lower left corner. It was her fifth goal of the season and third game-winner of 2007. That goal snapped ECU's eight-game undefeated streak.

UCF keeper Jennifer Manis recorded her second-straight shutout to begin the C-USA season, and her third overall on the year. She made three saves in the victory, while the defense prevented the Pirates from gaining offensive momentum after halftime. Meanwhile, George finished the contest with a match-high six shots. UCF went on to outshoot ECU, 21-7, including 16-1 following the conclusion of the first half.

The start of the match was delayed for 50 minutes due to inclement weather. When the game finally got going, ECU earned the first two scoring chances in the sixth minute but could not convert. Blair Heffner had the first opportunity but saw her shot turned aside by Manis. Amy Szilard grabbed the rebound in the box and appeared to have a clear look at the net, but the Knights' defense quickly closed the shooting lane and blocked Szilard's shot on the goal line.

Senior Kate Begley and junior Danielle Dos Santos then had UCF's best chances to get on the board first, only to see both of their attempts tipped away from the net by ECU goalkeeper Amber Campbell with less than 16 minutes left in the half.

UTEP 1, SMU 0
Powered by Jo Radcliffe's second-half goal and stifling team defense, UTEP defeated C-USA preseason favorite SMU, 1-0, at University Field. The Miners, who by virtue of their second straight win, move to 8-4-1, 2-0 C-USA on the year while SMU falls to 5-3-1 and 1-1, respectively. It marks the first time since the 2003 campaign that UTEP has opened league play with a pair of victories.

Cortney Casey registered an assist on Radcliffe's goal, while Jessica Salvi was dazzling in net for the Miners. The senior turned away all nine shots on goal by the Mustangs to pick up her third shutout on the year.

SMU had the first opportunity of the game, taking advantage of an errant pass by the Miners. Marisa Schieda stepped in front of the pass and fired on net, but the shot sailed high.

The Miners responded by forcing play deep into the Mustangs' portion of the pitch. Tameka Sumter used her speed to create some space on the right wing before lofting a cross toward a streaking Lauren Hamson. The pass was off target, though, as Hamson was unable to get her foot on the ball. UTEP kept the pressure on, with Jami Tullius testing SMU netminder Ashley Gunter. The junior was up to the task, keeping the match scoreless.

In what was quickly becoming a back-and-forth affair, the Mustangs answered the Miners' aggressive mindset by stringing together a couple of passes to set up shop offensively. A crossing attempt was blocked, setting up a corner kick for SMU. Brittainy Vice lobbed a dangerous ball into the box, but Alyssa Pembroke's header attempt crept wide of the net.

On their ensuing offensive possession, the Orange and Blue nearly found the first goal of the match. Sumter fed Hamson, who was barring down on Gunter. The SMU keeper had the angle played perfectly, which allowed her to make the point-blank save. At the 26-minute mark, Sumter made a great run and was rewarded for it with a brilliant pass from Neresa Taylor. Sumter's crossing attempt was blocked, affording the Miners a corner kick. Casey lifted a ball into the box, that was deflected right back to the junior. Casey laced a blast, but Gunter was there to calmly collect the ball. As the half wore on, the pace of play finally started to slow down. Both defenses started to tighten up, as the game was being contested primarily in the middle part of the pitch.

The Mustangs responded to the pressure with a couple offensive chances of their own. Salvi was up to the task both times, though, turning away chances by Caitlin Carter and Allison Brill in a span of three minutes. Salvi was called upon in the final minute of the period, showing good form on Jena Lind's blast from 20 yards out.

At the onset of the second half, SMU had a great chance after the Miners' offside trap left them out of position. Kim Peabody had snuck in behind the defense. She raced in alone on Salvi, who made her best save of the match with a dive to her right.

The Mustangs continued to play in UTEP territory, earning a trio of corner kicks in five minutes. The Mustangs managed two shots off the set pieces, with Salvi coming up with two big saves. The first came on a try by Carley Phillips from just outside the box, while the latter was a Kimber Bailey header at the goalmouth.

The next several minutes, the Miners elevated their intensity as they sought to regain the momentum. The effort merited the first good scoring chance of the period for UTEP, with a Cara Nordin cross into the box dangling in the air. Gunter came off her line to snatch it before Sumter could get a head on it. UTEP continued to pressure, garnering a free kick from 35 yards out. Josan, rather than fire on net, played a sneaky ball to Sumter. The sophomore took one dribble before drilling a shot that blistered just wide of the net.

With 24 minutes to play in regulation, Angie Kleinfelder stole a pass from a Mustang defender and sent Casey in on net. Casey's blast was deflected out of bounds by a diving Gunter, setting up an Orange and Blue corner kick. Casey lobbed the ball into the box off the corner, where Radcliffe elevated above the rest and hammered it past Gunter with a well-struck header to put UTEP up, 1-0. The tally was Radcliffe's fourth on the campaign.

SMU responded with an offensive flurry of its own, which almost resulted in the match-tying-goal. A ball was crossed into the box, where it bounced among a large contingent of players. It was finally controlled by SMU's Vice, who fired on net. Salvi used lightning-quick reflexes to make the save.

Six minutes later, it was Bailey again testing the UTEP netminder. Bailey laced a high-arching shot that forced Salvi to make a leaping save. The stop ignited the Miners, who raced up field the next few minutes in search of an insurance tally. Casey nearly found it, but Gunter used every inch of her 6-0 frame to punch the shot over the net. Four minutes later, it was Hamson who vied for UTEP's second goal of the match. Once again, though, Gunter was in position to make the save.

Southern Miss 1, Marshall 0
Sarah McFadden scored the lone goal of the match in the 25th minute on a penalty kick to lead Southern Miss to a 1-0 Conference USA women' soccer victory over Marshall at the Southern Miss Soccer Complex.

Southern Miss snapped an 11-match C-USA losing streak, dating back to a 1-1 double-overtime tie against Houston in 2005. The victory also was the first in a league match in 16 tries. The Lady Eagles outshot the visitors 19-11 and 10-5 with shots on goal. Southern Miss goalkeeper Anna Fiser tallied five saves on the afternoon. McFadden, who had eight of the Lady Eagles shots in the match, scored her fourth goal of the campaign. Megan Kolts added four shots and Jana Mason three for the home squad.

Marshall got three shots from Ali Lizotte and two from Missy Gordon of the bench as Liz Orton notched nine saves for the Herd.

Colorado College 4, Tulsa
Senior forward Amara Wilson and junior defender Alexa Bannerman each scored a goal and set up another on Sunday, fueling Colorado College to a 4-0 victory over Tulsa at CC¹s Stewart Field. With their biggest offensive uprising of the season, the Tigers improved to 6-3-2 overall and 1-1 in league play. All four tallies came in the opening 33 minutes of play.

Sophomore Emily Beans and freshman Tiffany Brown, who remain tied for the team lead with five tallies apiece this campaign, also scored in the first half when Colorado College dominated possession and out-shot the Golden Hurricane by a 12-1 margin. The Tigers finished with an 18-8 edge for the match.

Three goalkeepers ¬junior Geneva Sills, sophomore Jackie Danzig and freshman Emma Bailey shared the shutout. Sills didn¹t face a shot in the opening half. Danzig made two saves and Bailey made one while splitting the final 45 minutes. Tulsa¹s Kendall Harclerode finished with seven stops.