TAMPA, Fla, Sept. 10, 2018- The USF men’s soccer team defeated FAU 4-1, led by a decisive two-goal effort from sophomore Alex Zis (Oakville, Canada) in front of more than 700 fans at Corbett Stadium on Monday night. 

 

Trey Jackson (Ocala, Fla.), opened the scoring effort in the 34^thminute with his first goal of the season. Off an assist from Emilio Ycaza, Jackson curled in a shot into the upper-left corner of the net and over the fingertips of the Owls’ goalkeeper.

 

It didn’t take the Bulls long to double their lead, as Henrique Gallina, tight roped the byline and squared the ball onto the feet of Avionne Flanagan (Baltimore, Md.), whose deflected shot found the back of the net. The goal is Flanagan’s first of the season, and second of his career. Gallina’s assist is a first for the freshman from Atibaia, Brazil.  

 

Alex Zis (Oakville, Ontario, Canada.), provided the finishing touches on the match, as he scored off two set pieces---a free-kick right on the edge of the box and a penalty kick. Zis’ penalty kick came after a foul on a Flanagan one-man fast break. Zis took the free-kick right on the edge of the box and got up over the wall and into the bottom-left corner past the keeper.

 

USF had nine shots on goal compared to just two by FAU.  The Owls were able to get a goal back via freshman forward Jean Paul Rafols in the 86^thminute and prevented the Bulls’ hopes of a clean-sheet on the night. The Owl’s goal came off a set piece, as Rafols headed in the in-swinging corner kick.

 

The Bulls had a total of 17 shots on the night with nine of them on target, while the Owls had a total of 11 shots on the night with only two on target. The Bulls played without their top goal scorer, Tomasz Skublak, who was serving a one-game suspension due to a red card he picked up in the previous match against Ohio State, where he scored the game-winner. Notably, Alex Zis had 5 shots on the night with 3 on target, including two goals from set pieces.  Trey Jackson had 4 shots on goal with three on target, including the opening goal. Emilio Ycaza had 3 shots on the night with one on target.

 

Harrison Devenish-Meares (Sydney, Australia) played a full 90 minutes in goal for the Bulls but did not  record a save on the night as the USF back-line was solid throughout the match.

 

USF improves to 2-4-0 on the season while Florida Atlantic falls to 2-3-0. 

 

 

Quotable

“I was pleased, we set out a pretty good game plan to be very disciplined in the way we approached it,” head coach Bob Butehorn said. “We played a really emotional game against Ohio State, and we had to [do that]. I was pleased with how the guys started and with how the guys broke it down tonight, especially without Skublak. I think it was very good for our team to have this win.”

 

Notable

·       Alex Zis had 5 shots on the night with 3 on target, including two goals from set pieces. 

·       Trey Jackson had 4 shots on goal with three on target, including the opening goal. 

·       The Bulls played without their top goal scorer, Tomasz Skublak, who was serving a one-game suspension due to a red card he picked up in the previous match. 

·       The victory is the second consecutive win for USF, who opened the season against four straight teams who saw rankings this season. 

 

Up Next

The Bulls will travel to face FGCU on Saturday, Sept. 15 in Fort Myers, Fla. at 7 p.m.  

 

About USF Men’s Soccer

The Bulls concluded the 2017 regular season with a 6-6-4 overall record and finished fifth in the American Athletic Conference with a 3-2-2 mark. Head Coach Bob Butehorn leads the Bulls in his second season at the helm in 2018. Senior goalkeeper Christian Knight was selected as the American Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, while sophomore Adrian Bilhardt was added to the preseason all-conference team.

 

Follow the men’s soccer team on social media (Twitter| Facebook| Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.

 

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