Men's Soccer October 09, 2014 USF

No. 16 USF Falls to Tulsa After Wild Second Half

Team	1	2	OT	2OT	Final
Tulsa	1	3	-	-	4
USF	0	3	-	-	3

By TOM ZEBOLD

USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, OCT. 8, 2014 – USF roared back with goals from Lindo Mfeka, Edwin Moalosi and Lucas Baldin in the second half but the No. 16 Bulls couldn't complete the comeback in a 4-3 loss to Tulsa on Wednesday night.

The fourth meeting between the programs featured six goals after the break, including Baldin's fourth of the season that cut USF's deficit to 4-3 with about 5 minutes remaining. Moalosi's shot at a tie went just wide with less than 2 minutes remaining before USF's three-game winning streak came to an end in front of a crowd of 786 at Corbett Stadium.

“I realize I've got a group that's not going to quit and we're going to fight to the end. I think they did that tonight,” head coach George Kiefer said.

The Bulls (6-4, 2-1) went into halftime trailing for the first time since Sept. 8 against No. 8 Washington after Byron Knowles-Ramirez put Tulsa ahead with an unassisted goal in the 32^nd minute. It marked the first goal USF had given up in 336 minutes of play after posting shutout victories over UConn, Georgia Southern and Temple.

USF bounced back in a big way in the second half with two goals in the span of 23 seconds for the second consecutive game. Marcus Epps found Mfeka alone in front of the box and the sophomore midfielder beat keeper Brandon Hanat for his first goal of the season in the 74^th minute.

USF fans were still celebrating when Tyler Blackwood dished the ball to Moalosi, who put his fourth goal of the season into the back of the net from 6 yards out. Blackwood scored goals 23 seconds apart on the way to a hat trick in USF's 3-0 win over Temple on Oct. 4.

“In the second half we made a couple little tweaks to it and I felt like the game was going our way,” Kiefer said.

Tulsa (6-4-1, 2-1) grabbed the momentum back in the 80^th minute when Cameron Drackett scored his third goal of the season from 10 yards out. It marked the first time USF has given up three goals in a game since Oct. 26, 2012 at DePaul, a stretch that covered 32 games.

The Golden Hurricane extended the lead to 4-2 on a penalty kick by Aymar Sigue in the 84^th minute but the Bulls still had plenty of fight left in them. Blackwood recorded his second assist of the game a minute later when Baldin gave USF new life with a goal from 18 yards out.

The Bulls continue American Athletic Conference play 7 p.m. Saturday at Cincinnati. USF returns to Corbett Stadium on Wednesday, Oct. 15 to face Denver at 7:30 p.m. Purchase tickets to USF-Denver and the Bulls' remaining home games against Memphis (Oct. 25) and UConn (Nov. 1) HERE.

Also don't forget to follow the men's soccer team on social media (Twitter / Facebook) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.

The men's soccer program has been one of the most successful teams on campus over the years, making it to seven straight NCAA tournaments and eight of the last nine. They won the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championship last season and Head Coach George Kiefer has also led the Bulls to two Elite Eight appearances and four conference titles in his 12 seasons as head coach. Purchase season and single-game tickets HERE.

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