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UConn Shuts Out Penn in the NCAA Second Round
Boxscore
STORRS, CT (November 27) – Four
different players scored as the No. 8 University of Connecticut men’s
soccer team shutout No. 20 University of Pennsylvania, 4-0, in a
second round match-up of the 2002 NCAA Tournament at Morrone Stadium
on Wednesday afternoon. UConn continues onto the third round with a
16-5 record, while Penn completes its season at 12-4-1.
The game time was originally scheduled for 1:00 pm but was
moved several times due to field and weather conditions. The game got underway
at 3:30 pm after the UConn ground crews spent all day clearing snow off the
field.
Connecticut scored three first half goals in just under a
seven-minute time span. Damani Ralph (Kingston, Jamaica) began the rally at the
30:43 after an Andres Rota (Kingswood, TX) pass from the backfield. Ralph,
scoring his team-leading 18 th
goal of the season, took the ball up the left sideline and took the shot from
the corner of the box for the score. At the 33:30 mark, Leandro de Oliveira (Sao
Paulo, Brazil) sent a perfect cross to the far side of the box off a corner
kick. Shavar Thomas (Kingston, Jamaica) was positioned at the outside of the
post and nailed it home on a header. The last goal of the half was scored at the
37:32 mark on a shot from Cesar Cuellar (Santa Cruz, Bolivia). Ralph fed a
forward pass from the backfield to de Oliveira. He took the ball up the left
side, turned into the goal box crossing a low pass to the foot of Cuellar, who
shot the ball as Penn keeper Matthew Haefner went to make a diving save.
The second half of the game did not feature a lot of action
with UConn netting the only goal of the half. Michael Mordocco (Dix Hills, NY)
placed a ball into the net off his thigh off a rebounded saved shot from Ian
Quattrocchi (St. Louis, MO) with just under seven-minutes left in regulation.
UConn goalie Adam Schuerman (Brookfield, WI) earned his and
the team’s tenth shutout of the season making three saves in net, while Haefner
stopped two shots.
Connecticut will play host to
Indiana on Sunday, December 1 at 1:00 pm at Morrone Stadium. The
Huskies will look to stop the Hoosiers from making their sixth straight
NCAA final four appearance. |
