No. 24 USF & No. 21 SMU Battle to 2-2 Draw
DALLAS, OCT. 18, 2014 – The 24th ranked USF men’s soccer team battled No. 21 SMU to a 2-2 draw on Saturday night at Westcott Field in Dallas, Texas.
Sophomore forward Marcus Epps scored both USF goals while goalkeeper Spasoje Stefanovic made a career-high eight saves on the night.
Epps got the scoring started in the 21st minute with his first goal of the season. Lindo Mfeka stole the ball from a Mustangs’ defender and found Epps all alone in the left side of the box, who beat the keeper with a shot in the top right corner. With the goal Epps became the 14th different USF player to score a goal this season.
The Bulls held a 5-2 shot advantage at the break and went to halftime with a 1-0 lead.
Play opened up in the second half as the Bulls and Mustangs combined for three goals and 13 combined shots.
SMU (8-3-2, 3-0-2) tied things up at one in the 61st minute on a great free kick by Bryce Clark from about 30 yards out.
USF responded quickly, however, as Mfeka and Epps hooked up for the second time to give the Bulls a 2-1 lead. Mfeka received a pass from Edwin Moalosi in the box and crossed the ball to a wide open Epps, who headed it into an open net in the 63rd minute.
Despite being down for the second time in the match, SMU continued to apply pressure and found the equalizer on another set piece with 15 minutes to play. Jared Rice sent his free kick into the middle of the box where the Mustangs’ leading scorer, Idrissa Camara, headed it home for his sixth goal of the season.
The game headed to overtime after neither team was able to find the game-winner in regulation.
Both teams traded chances throughout the two overtime periods but neither side was able to generate any real good opportunities as the game ended in a 2-2 draw.
It was the first tie for the Bulls this season and a solid result on the road in a tough environment. With the draw, USF brought its record to 8-4-1 overall and 3-1-1 in American Athletic Conference play.
USF stays on the road with another conference game on Wednesday night against in-state rival UCF in Orlando at 7 p.m., before returning home Saturday, Oct. 25 for a match against Memphis.
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