NOTEBOOK: Men’s soccer picks up first conference win of season

Junior goalkeeper Kazuna Takase had not appeared in a game since Sept. 6 against Clemson, but the Tomoto, Japan, native helped keep Temple off the board in USF’s win Saturday. USF ATHLETICS PHOTO

After opening conference play with four straight losses, the USF men’s soccer team won its first game against a conference opponent this season with a 3-0 victory over Temple on Saturday.

The Bulls (3-6-1, 1-4 AAC) jumped ahead early with a goal in the 12th minute from freshman midfielder Segun Afolabi and never looked back as they later sealed the game with scores from freshman winger JT Copper and junior midfielder Henrique Gallina.

In recognition of his work in keeping the Owls off the board, junior goalkeeper Kazuna Takase was named AAC Goalkeeper of the Week on Monday. The match against Temple was Takase’s first game back in over a month due to an injury.

Next up for USF is a home match at Corbett Stadium on Breast Cancer Awareness Night against Memphis on Friday at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.

Volleyball drops pair of matches to Tulane, Houston

The USF volleyball team narrowly lost 3-2 against Tulane on Friday, and went on to also fall to Houston 3-1 on Sunday.

USF (6-11, 0-6 AAC) won the second fourth sets against the Green Wave to send the match to a decisive fifth set, but Tulane ultimately won the final frame 15-12. As for the match against Houston, the Bulls started off hot with a 30-28 first-set win, but went on to lose the next three.

Over the course of both matches, freshman middle blocker Tizi Puljiz stood out with 24 total kills in addition to 24 digs. She posted a double-double against the Cougars, the second of her collegiate career.

USF will hit the road to take on UCF in the War on I-4 on Wednesday at 7 p.m. It will be streamed live on ESPN+ and broadcast on iHeartRadio Bulls Unlimited. 

Women’s soccer triumphs over UCF, but loses to SMU

It was an exciting match in Orlando between the USF women’s soccer team and UCF on Friday. The game went into double overtime before freshman midfielder Emilie Lajmiri scored the game-winner in the 109th minute.

Sophomore defender Lucy Roberts got the scoring started early on, but UCF senior forward Dayana Martin knotted the game up in the 35th minute. The score would remain tied until Lajmiri’s late-game heroics.

A different turnout was the case against SMU three days later, however, as the Bulls (8-3-2, 3-1-1 AAC) couldn’t muster any scores against the Mustangs in a 2-0 loss.

USF had not lost a game against a conference opponent since Oct. 31, 2019, and only recorded one tie within that time frame as well.

The Bulls will have the opportunity to get back to their winning ways against Oct. 17 against Memphis at 2 p.m. in Tennessee.