ODU Men's Soccer Outshoots and Outplays UCF but Falls to No. 2 Knights, 2-1

By Harry Minium
 
NORFOLK, Va. – The only difference between the nation's second-ranked men's soccer team and Old Dominion Saturday night was a penalty kick and some unlucky bounces of the ball.
 
On a night when ODU outhustled and outplayed UCF, the second-ranked Knights escaped with a 2-1 victory at the ODU Soccer Complex. ODU outshot UCF 14-11 and during a six-minute stretch of the second half, had four scoring chances but failed to score. 
 
UCF (7-1-2 overall, 3-1-1 Sun Belt) scored the game winner at 81:14 when ODU goalie Michael Statham punched a shot away from the net. Lucca Dourado got the rebound and knocked it into the net.
 
It was the first home loss for ODU (5-2-5, 2-2-1) and the second heartbreaking loss in a row. The Monarchs were coming off a 1-0 defeat last Saturday at South Carolina in which the Gamecocks won on a free kick with five seconds left in the game.
 
"The first 15 minutes, we didn't start the way we needed to," said associate head coach Tennant McVea, who will become ODU's head coach after long-time coach Alan Dawson retires following this season.
 
"I think our mentality was wrong and we gave them a little too much respect and they took advantage of that.
 
"But then when we got a foothold, we put them under pressure. And we were the better team for long periods of the game."



Both goals came after corner kicks and McVea said he emphasized to the players they have to do better in set play situations.
 
"But the effort of the players tonight off the ball and with the ball was fantastic," he added. "We went toe to toe with one of the best soccer teams in the country, one of the best soccer teams that I've seen in the last few years. And I think we deserve more than we got from the game tonight."
 
Dourado gave the Knights a 1-0 lead 11:50 into the first half on a penalty kick.
 
ODU tied the score 1-1 at 69:07 when Jonas Schmalbach, a graduate student from Venice, Italy, gathered a ball that UCF goalie Juanvi Munoz gave up in the middle of the field, and booted it into the net.



From then on ODU was clearly the aggressor.
 
Schmalbach, who transferred to ODU from UCF prior to last season, had a shot go just wide of the net at 72:26 and Michael Eberle just missed knocking in a cross pass at 73:53.
 
Then, with nine minutes left, Schmalbach had what appeared to be a breakaway. But on a night when it rained through parts of the game, he appeared he hit a wet spot, and appeared to have some contact with a UCF player, and lost the ball.

ODU had two corner kicks in the final 1:30 but could not score.
 
"This was a disappointing loss," Schmalbach said. "They were lucky to get away with a win and I think they know that. And we know we let one slip away.
 
"We have a very competitive team. I feel like we can put pressure on any team in the country.
 
"Unfortunately, the ball did not go in for a second time for us today."
 
The Monarchs next take on James Madison Wednesday in Harrisonburg.
 
"That's an in-state game, a rivalry game, and I told our players that we've got to pick ourselves up again," McVea said.


 
"There were a lot of positives from this game. That's an experienced team we played. They've got a lot of older players and we've got a lot of younger players. Our young players have got to learn from games like this.
 
"This team has shown they're willing to work, to go out and give it all they have. We need to have that kind of effort at JMU."