By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, AUG. 31, 2015 – USF men's soccer showed the mental toughness it takes to accomplish great things Monday morning.
Goals from Brandon Riley and Kendan Anderson helped the Bulls get past No. 3 Georgetown, 2-0, in front of their dedicated fans at Corbett Stadium. The victory marked USF's first over a top-10 team since 2011 and it's the Bulls' fourth win over a third-ranked team in head coach George Kiefer's tenure with the program.
USF's last victory over a No. 3 team in the nation came on Nov. 16, 2008 against St. John's and the Bulls had to wait awhile to put the latest upset in the books. USF-Georgetown was originally scheduled for 7 p.m. Sunday, but inclement weather caused by the remnants of Hurricane Erika postponed the action until 9:30 a.m. Monday.
“It was worth the wait. You give Georgetown credit, a lot of teams would have said, 'OK, we don't play,' and not stick around,” Kiefer said. “We both wanted the game and that's why they're as good as they are. They don't run from anybody.”
USF (2-0) pulled ahead of the Hoyas (0-1-1) in the 28th minute, when Riley headed home a corner kick from Lindo Mfeka for his first-career goal.
“Every practice before the game we work on set pieces out here, so it's good to see our work pays off,” said Riley, a senior defender from Orlando.
USF finished with a 15-9 shot advantage, 9-2 in the first half, and the Bulls kept applying the pressure after the break. Anderson, a junior forward from Jamaica, got a pass from Atsou Ayah and padded the lead from about 12 yards out with his first-career goal in the 78th minute.
USF started the season with a 2-0 win over Missouri State on Aug. 28 and the defense continued its stellar start. Junior Spasoje Stefanovic, The American's Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year in 2014, only had to make one save in his eighth career shutout.
“It always starts with good defending and to have two shutouts in a row is important,” Kiefer said.
Beating a third-ranked team is never easy and Kiefer was impressed with the Bulls' ability to stay locked in. Officials waited until nearly 10 p.m. Sunday to postpone the game, but the Bulls were up to the task bright and early Monday morning.
“When you really have a good meaning as to why you play, then these little distractions are not anything,” Kiefer said. “I thought they were clearly extremely focused for the entire match.”
USF looks for more victories over ranked teams during a two-game road trip this weekend. The Bulls begin their Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament run with a test at No. 4 Notre Dame on Friday at 7:30 p.m. USF then faces off against No. 14 Indiana on Sunday at 11:30 a.m.
Fans' next chance to catch the Bulls at home is Friday, Sept. 11 against Georgia Southern at 7 p.m. Purchase tickets HERE.
The men's soccer program has been one of the most successful on campus over the years, advancing to seven NCAA tournaments in the last eight seasons. The Bulls return 13 letterwinners and five starters from 2014 on top of bringing in the third-ranked signing class according to College Soccer News. They won the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championship in 2013 and head coach George Kiefer has also led the Bulls to two Elite Eight appearances and four conference/division titles in his 13 seasons as the head man. Follow the men's soccer team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. Purchase tickets HERE.
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