Miscues doom USF men’s soccer in 2-0 defeat
A defensive miscue by senior goalie Spasoje Stefanovic allowed Jacksonville to go up 2-0 in the second half. ORACLE FILE PHOTO/ADAM MATHIEU
The USF men’s soccer team is still searching for its first win of the season after failing to capitalize on opportunities and making some uncharacteristic mistakes in a 2-0 loss to Jacksonville University at Corbett Stadium on Thursday.
A scoreless first half was controlled by the Bulls, who kept much of the possession in Jacksonville’s defensive half.
Coming out of the locker room at halftime the Bulls really began to get quality chances at goal and seemed poised to break the scoreless tie at any moment.
“I thought a lot of balls were whipped across the box,” coach George Kiefer said. “If you finish on one or two of those you really take the pressure off.”
While the Bulls failed to score on any of their 12 shots, Jacksonville was able to cause fatal damage on five shots.
The Dolphins broke through on a precicely placed free kick by Junior Midfielder Mitchell Hopkins to sophomore midfielder Sam Gardener. Gardener was able to push the ball past USF goalie Spasoje Stefanovic to take the 1-0 lead in the 69th minute.
Just two minutes later, Jacksonville was able to strike again when Stefanovic went far out of his box to send a ball to the offensive half. The goalie was unable to kick the ball as he wanted, causing the ball to travel only a few feet to Jacksonville forward Kai Bennett.
Once the Bennett controlled the ball, with the net exposed, all he had to do was push the ball into the empty net sending the Dolphins home with the victory.
“The second one was just a bit of misfortune,” Kiefer said. “You see guys who make millions make the same type of mistakes. Just an in-game error.”
The Bulls look for their first victory at 1 p.m. Saturday against San Francisco.
More Stories
USF campus ministers offer perspective on stadium development: ‘Exciting benefit of exposure.’
Take a tranquil stroll down Sycamore Drive. It’s a quieter part of campus, hidden away from the usual hustle and bustle of USF. It’s home to an area colloquially known as “Religious Row,” a collection of on-campus religious organizations. In just a few years – with the construction of an on-campus football stadium – the […]
Here’s why these USF softball players chose their jersey numbers
For athletes, the number they wear is more than the added fabric on the back of their jersey. It often tells a deeper story about the players — who they are and where they come from. Here’s why these three USF softball players chose their respective jersey numbers. Related: USF softball is gaining momentum during […]
USF football head coach Alex Golesh: The man behind the process
Football coach Alex Golesh said USF has been on his mind since his own days as a college student when the program was top five in the country. “I distinctly remember sitting there watching it and thinking ‘What is S Florida and what are they doing in the top five in the country?’” Golesh said. […]
USF baseball matches last season’s wins at midseason
USF baseball has reached its midseason, powering through a turnaround year. Despite losing to Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday 7-5, It has already won 21 games, matching the same total from last season with a road victory against Tulane on Sunday. The Bulls (21-16, 7-5 AAC) stand third out of 10 teams in the conference. […]
USF men’s basketball was gutted by the transfer portal. Here’s who remains on the roster.
Things move pretty quickly in this new world of college basketball thanks in large part to the explosion of the transfer portal. Less than a month removed from a second round exit in the National Invitation Tournament, USF men’s basketball looks a lot different than it did in mid-March. In the span of a […]
USF softball is gaining momentum during season’s final stretch
As the USF softball season draws to a close, it seems the team has found some momentum. The Bulls (30-16, 9-9 AAC) have won six of its last seven games. In the last nine days, they have won their last two conference series and stunned the then-ranked No.9 Florida Gators on Wednesday. USF had yet […]