University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Cincinnati
Men's Soccer Falls to Cincinnati in Shootout
11/8/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Nov. 8, 2010
CINCINNATI, Ohio - The No. 9 UConn men's soccer team battled Cincinnati to a 1-1 tie on Monday night in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinal round but fell to the Bearcats 4-1 in a shootout as Cincinnati now advances to the conference tournament semifinals at Red Bull Stadium this weekend.
After 110 minutes of action, a 1-1 tie forced tonight's match into a shootout to see which team would advance to the semifinals to face Providence on Friday night. All four of Cincinnati's attempts went into the back of the net, while Bearcats' Matt Williams made two key saves on two UConn attempts to give Cincinnati the 4-1 shootout victory.
UConn (12-2-5) outshot the Bearcats (7-4-7) 14-10 on the night, including a 5-2 clip in the second half. Their aggressive attack was a key factor in the first half after Cincinnati took a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute.
Nick Weightman drilled a shot from 30-yards out that soared over the hands of a leaping Josh Ford to give Cincinnati an early 1-0 advantage. It was just the third time all year that UConn allowed an opponent to get on the board first as it also marked just the sixth goal given up by the Huskies' defense in 19 games this season.
In the 27th minute, Stephane Diop scored the equalizer as he connected on his own rebound off a blocked shot a few seconds prior. His eighth goal of the year tied the contest at one, taking back the game's momentum from the Bearcats.
Diop had another opportunity in the half as he took a pass from Tony Cascio at the top of the 18-yard box, turned and fired a shot at net, hitting the crossbar and sending the ball back into play.
Jossimar Sanchez led the Huskies with four shots on the night, including two on goal, while Mamadou Doudou Diouf and Tony Cascio both registered three shots.
Ford made three stops in net for the Huskies and allowed one goal in 110:00 minutes of action.
In the shootout, Cincinnati took the first attempt as Weightman connected on the goal to put the Bearcats up 1-0. UConn's Carlos Alvarez took the Huskies' first shot, drilling the ball into the back of the net to tie the score at one apiece. Branden Stelmak also scored for Cincinnati before UConn's Thomas Wharf's shot by the far post was saved by a diving Williams.
After another successful attempt by the Bearcats'Matt Bahner, Juho Karppinen's attempt was saved by Williams, giving Cincinnati a 3-1 advantage. Roger Thompson sealed the shootout victory as he connected on the final attempt for the Bearcats.
The Huskies will await their NCAA Tournament fate as the 2010 College Cup bracket will be released on Monday, Nov. 15 at 4:30 p.m. live on ESPNU. The 48-team field will begin play with the first round of the tournament on Thursday, Nov. 18. For more information on what's next for the Huskies, stay tuned to UConnHuskies.com beginning on Monday night.
