Saturday, November 29
Morrison Stadium
2:00 PM
Creighton University
2
vs
1
Connecticut
Men's Soccer Moves to NCAA Quarterfinals With Overtime Victory
11/29/2008 5:30:00 PM | Men's Soccer
OMAHA, Neb. ? The second-ranked Creighton men's soccer team topped No. 22 Connecticut 2-1 in overtime Saturday afternoon in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at Morrison Stadium. The seventh-seeded Bluejays (16-1-2) advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament where they will travel to second-seeded and third-ranked Maryland next Saturday in College Park, Md. Senior Seth Sinovic headed in the game-winner in the 99th minute off of a free kick from senior Andrei Gotsmanov to keep the Bluejays' season alive.
Despite a dominating performance by the Bluejays, they needed to come-from-behind to keep their season alive. The Jays conceded a goal in the 33rd minute when UConn's Tony Cascio snuck behind the Bluejay defense on a lead pass from Akeem Priestly and he put his shot into the net for his second goal of the season and second in as many games. The shot by Cascio proved to be half of UConn's first-half shots, as CU out-shot the Huskies 11-2 in the first half.
Creighton continued to control play after halftime, blasting 14 shots compared to just four by the Huskies after the half. The Jays finally broke through the packed-in UConn defense in the 79th minute on a set play. After a Huskie foul was called about 40 yards from the goal, Gotsmanov took the free kick for the Jays. He knocked in his service to the far post where freshman Ethan Finlay headed the ball in front of the net and junior Chris Schuler connected on a header of his own. For Schuler, the MVC Defensive Player of the Year, it was his first goal since scoring the overtime game-winner at Bradley in the 2006 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship match.
CU continued pressuring the Huskies after scoring the equalizer, but could not find the back of the net in regulation.
The Jays scored on their only shot of overtime. The play was set up afer UConn's Cruz Hernandez was issued a yellow card. Gotsmanov, the MVC Player of the Year, took the free kick again, this time on the opposite side of the pitch as his first assist. The lefty put a perfectly placed low drive into the box, where Sinovic flicked a header past a diving Josh Ford in net for UConn, touching off a celebration on the pitch and in the stands. For Sinovic, it was his third goal of the season, and his second game-winning tally in as many games in the NCAA postseason.
The win moves the Bluejays to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005 and the fourth time since 2002. UConn's loss ends the Huskies season with an 11-5-6 record.
Creighton will travel to Maryland (20-3-0) next Saturday with a berth in the College Cup on the line. Kickoff at Maryland will take place at noon (CST).
NOTES: Creighton is now on a 15 match unbeaten streak (13-0-2) ... CU moved its home record to 10-1-0 this year ... The Jays improved to 19-0-0 all-time when Gotsmanov records an assist or goal in a match ... UConn's loss in overtime was its first in nine OT matches this year (2-1-6) ... UConn finished the season 3-3-3 in road games ... The Jays are now 1-1-0 all-time against UConn, avenging CU's loss in the 2000 NCAA Tournament title match ... The Jays are now 6-1-0 at Morrison Stadium in the NCAA Tournament and 7-4-0 at home all-time in the NCAA postseason ... CU is 4-0-1 against top-25 teams this year and is now 12-1-1 at Morrison Stadium all-time against ranked foes ... CU is 1-1-1 all-time against Maryland, including 0-1-1 in the NCAA Tournament ... CU last played Maryland in the third round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament, UMD advanced 5-4 on PKs following a scoreless draw ... The Jays are undefeated in their last 15 matches (12-0-3) away from Omaha, including an 8-0-3 mark in true road games since the start of the 2007 season ... CU has advanced to three College Cups (1996, 2000, 2002).
Despite a dominating performance by the Bluejays, they needed to come-from-behind to keep their season alive. The Jays conceded a goal in the 33rd minute when UConn's Tony Cascio snuck behind the Bluejay defense on a lead pass from Akeem Priestly and he put his shot into the net for his second goal of the season and second in as many games. The shot by Cascio proved to be half of UConn's first-half shots, as CU out-shot the Huskies 11-2 in the first half.
Creighton continued to control play after halftime, blasting 14 shots compared to just four by the Huskies after the half. The Jays finally broke through the packed-in UConn defense in the 79th minute on a set play. After a Huskie foul was called about 40 yards from the goal, Gotsmanov took the free kick for the Jays. He knocked in his service to the far post where freshman Ethan Finlay headed the ball in front of the net and junior Chris Schuler connected on a header of his own. For Schuler, the MVC Defensive Player of the Year, it was his first goal since scoring the overtime game-winner at Bradley in the 2006 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship match.
CU continued pressuring the Huskies after scoring the equalizer, but could not find the back of the net in regulation.
The Jays scored on their only shot of overtime. The play was set up afer UConn's Cruz Hernandez was issued a yellow card. Gotsmanov, the MVC Player of the Year, took the free kick again, this time on the opposite side of the pitch as his first assist. The lefty put a perfectly placed low drive into the box, where Sinovic flicked a header past a diving Josh Ford in net for UConn, touching off a celebration on the pitch and in the stands. For Sinovic, it was his third goal of the season, and his second game-winning tally in as many games in the NCAA postseason.
The win moves the Bluejays to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005 and the fourth time since 2002. UConn's loss ends the Huskies season with an 11-5-6 record.
Creighton will travel to Maryland (20-3-0) next Saturday with a berth in the College Cup on the line. Kickoff at Maryland will take place at noon (CST).
NOTES: Creighton is now on a 15 match unbeaten streak (13-0-2) ... CU moved its home record to 10-1-0 this year ... The Jays improved to 19-0-0 all-time when Gotsmanov records an assist or goal in a match ... UConn's loss in overtime was its first in nine OT matches this year (2-1-6) ... UConn finished the season 3-3-3 in road games ... The Jays are now 1-1-0 all-time against UConn, avenging CU's loss in the 2000 NCAA Tournament title match ... The Jays are now 6-1-0 at Morrison Stadium in the NCAA Tournament and 7-4-0 at home all-time in the NCAA postseason ... CU is 4-0-1 against top-25 teams this year and is now 12-1-1 at Morrison Stadium all-time against ranked foes ... CU is 1-1-1 all-time against Maryland, including 0-1-1 in the NCAA Tournament ... CU last played Maryland in the third round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament, UMD advanced 5-4 on PKs following a scoreless draw ... The Jays are undefeated in their last 15 matches (12-0-3) away from Omaha, including an 8-0-3 mark in true road games since the start of the 2007 season ... CU has advanced to three College Cups (1996, 2000, 2002).
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Soccer
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/ Men's Soccer
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/ Men's Soccer
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