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By SEAN BAROWS
GoUSFBulls.com
TAMPA – UCF went five for five in penalty kicks to advance past USF in the American Athletic Conference semifinals on Friday night in Orlando.
Sophomore Allie Gerry iced it for the Knights (16-2-3) after Jessica Clark was unable to convert in the fourth round of penalty kicks for the Bulls.
This marks the second straight year that USF has been eliminated from the conference semifinals in penalty kicks, falling 5-4 to Georgetown in the Big East Tournament last season.
It was a hard fought match throughout with 30 combined fouls and some excellent defense from both sides.
After playing most of the first half in their own end the Bulls (10-4-6) came out with a lot of energy offensively in the second half and were able to create some good opportunities.
Clark nearly put the Bulls on top in the 65th minute with a rocket that sailed just over the crossbar from about 25 yards out.
USF also created some good looks off of corner kicks with a couple of headers from Cara Patterson just missing high.
Sharla Passariello had another opportunity late in the second half but her shot was turned away by UCF goalkeeper Lianne Maldonado.
After being outshot 6-3 in the first half, USF posted a 7-5 advantage in shots during the second half of play and had 11 total for the match. Junior midfielder Cristin Granados led the Bulls with three shots total on the night.
Both teams traded goals in the first three rounds of penalty kicks before Kristina Trujic's successful penalty gave the Knights a 4-3 lead after four rounds. Clark's fourth-round attempt for USF glanced of the left post.
That set the stage for Gerry's winner which put the Knights into the American Athletic Conference final. Passariello, Demi Stokes and Granados accounted for the Bulls' three successful kicks.
Bulls' sophomore goalkeeper Christiane Endler made seven saves on the night en route to posting her sixth shutout this season.
USF will now have to wait and see if they'll receive an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament. The Bulls have definitely proved they can play with the nation's top teams and can compete in the NCAA tournament. The selection show will air live on NCAA.com Monday, Nov. 11 at 4:30 p.m.
Bulls in Good Position for NCAA At-Large Bid
- With tonight's tie the Bulls snapped UCF's six-game winning streak and became only the second team this season to shutout the Knights. No. 3 Florida State was the other.
-The Bulls have played half of their games against top 64 RPI opponents and are now 3-3-4 in those games.
- USF is 5-2-3 in their last 10 games. Six of those games have come against teams in the top 64 of the RPI.
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