STORRS, Conn. (Friday, Nov. 11) ? In its first penalty kick shootout since 1991, the University of South Florida men's soccer team (12-5-1, 9-2-0 BIG EAST) tied the Providence Friars (6-3-9, 3-3-4 BIG EAST), 0-0, advancing to the BIG EAST Championship on PKs (3-2). Filling in for the injured Dane Brenner, goalkeeper Bryan Fossi made his first-career start to guide the Bulls to the finals, while USF notched its fourth shutout of the season.
“I'm happy that we advanced,” said head coach George Kiefer. “But, I didn't think that we played particularly well. The one thing I will say is that our goalkeeper (Bryan Fossi) was put in as a last-minute replacement for Dane (Brenner) and came up big for us. That's a story that he'll be able to tell for the rest of his life. He did an excellent job.”
Neither team could get much going early in the contest. Providence pressured the USF defense, registered five shots in the first 45 minutes. Fossi and the Bulls defense held strong, not allowing the Friars to capitalize on the early scoring chances, holding them scoreless. The Bulls had their best scoring chance with a two-on-none breakaway with Jordan Seabrook and Simon Schoendorf mid-way through the first half. In the 18-yard box, Seabrook took a shot on net, however goalkeeper Chris Konopka made the save, keeping the contest knotted at 0-0.
During the second half, USF created a number of chances, including a well-struck shot by Kevon Neaves and a bicycle-kick by first team All-BIG EAST selection Rodrigo Hidalgo. Neaves' shot was saved by Konopka, while Hidalgo's was blocked by a defender. The Bulls pressured the Friars late in the game, looking for the go-ahead goal, registered six shots in the second half.
With the game tied 0-0 after 90 minutes, two 10-minute overtime frames were played. During overtime, neither team could score the game-winning “golden goal”, sending the contest to a penalty kick shootout. The shootout was the first one for the Bulls since the 1991 season (winning 4-2 over Charlotte in the Metro Conference Tournament Finals ? Nov. 9, 1991).
Providence's Eoin Lynch missed the first attempt wide. Simon Schoendorf then gave USF a 1-0 advantage. Derek Nobrega evened the contest at 1-1. Kris Raad answered to give the Bulls a 2-1 lead. Both Ryan Maduro and Joris Claessens missed their next attempts ? both shots saved by each keeper. Providence drew even at 2-2 with a goal by Alex Bury. Yohance Marshall gave the Bulls a 3-2 edge. With the final shot in a must-score situation, Zachary Tobin missed wide to give the contest to the Bulls.
Fossi made two saves on the evening, while preventing Providence from creating anything in the USF area to record his first-career shutout. Brenner is expected to return for Sunday's championship game.
