TicketsOct. 28, 2006
, -- The Bearcats had chances, many chances, but came away with a 2-0 victory on Saturday night at Gettler Stadium in a BIG EAST Quarterfinal match. The Friars (13-5-0) knocked No. 15 UC (11-5-2) out of the tournament for the second straight year after topping the Bearcats, 2-1, at Gettler Stadium in 2005.
The Bearcats dominated every aspect of the match, except for where it counts most, on the scoreboard. UC outshot , 18-5, including a 9-4 edge in shots on goal.
"We did a lot of good things tonight. We created a lot of good chances," head coach Hylton Dayes said. "We didn't do a very good job of finishing."
Sophomore goalkeeper Timothy Murray made just his second start of the season for PC and made nine saves in recording the shutout victory. He had just three saves to his credit entering the match.
" is a solid team," Dayes continued. "They are a very opportunistic team and I think you saw that tonight."
UC controlled play in the end for the first 25 minutes of play, missing the first quality scoring opportunity of the match by mere inches in the 26th minute. Senior Kwame Sarkodie, who had entered the match just moments before, fired a 25-yard missile that beat but clanged square off the crossbar and was cleared out of harm's way by the PC defense.
Just five minutes later, the opportunistic Friars found the net. A Justin Kahle corner kick, the first and only corner of the match for PC, was swung in from the far side. Defender Amir Ikner deflected the ball past UC keeper Mike Vessells, giving a one-goal lead without taking a shot on goal.
The Bearcats continued to supply the pressure and Omar Cummings nearly equalized in the 41st minute, but his rip from just outside the 18 was a foot wide to the right.
Kenny Anaba had a pair of chances to knot the match just nine minutes apart in the second half. In the 62nd minute, the Bearcats' leading goal scorer took a perfectly-placed pass from Cummings in the box and had only to beat. His shot was saved by the sophomore keeper from point blank range. An almost identical chance in the 71st minute was again foiled by a well-timed save from .
put the match on ice in the 81st minute. With UC pushing forward in an attempt to tie, the Friars gained possession in the midfield and started a counterattack, with Touissant McClure streaking down the far sideline. His cross was deflected in the box, just out of the reach of a sprawling Vessells, and was tapped home by Jonathan Medcalf for his team-leading seventh tally of the season.
The Bearcats lost for just the second time all season on their home turf, holding a 6-2-1 record for the year and outscoring opponents, 16-6.
"I want to thank all of our fans," Dayes said of the 817 in attendance and the throngs that supported the Bearcats throughout the campaign. "They have been great all season. They live and die with every shot we take and with every save we make. I think we are building the foundation for a great college soccer atmosphere here."
UC will await the decision of the NCAA selection committee, which will announce the 48-team tournament pairings live on ESPNNews on Monday, Nov. 6 at 5 p.m.
"I feel like we've done enough, based on our results," Dayes said of his squad's postseason chances. "Obviously, that's not up to us right now. We're hoping that the strength of the BIG EAST, our quality wins and the fact that we are 9-2-1 in our last 12 games-the committee will look at that. If our season was to end today, I would feel like it was a success."