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Friday, September 27, 2002
Men's Soccer upends 22nd-ranked
Columbia
 t
was all South Florida as Florida International and Florida Atlantic
both came away winners in the first night of action in the 2002
Umbro Classic at University Park.
FAU edged out West Virginia, 4-3, in the first game while
the Golden Panthers used overtime to take out the nationally-ranked
Lions, 2-1, in the second contest.
Action resumes on Sunday with FIU facing the Mountaineers
at noon and FAU and Columbia squaring off at 2:00 p.m.
FIU 2, COLUMBIA 1 (OT) -- Oscar Gil's Golden
Goal in the fourth minute of overtime propelled the Golden Panthers
to a 2-1 victory over 22nd-ranked Columbia Friday night at University
Park.
A Matias Asorey shot deflected off Lion goalkeeper Dean Arnaoutakis
and fell to the feet of the waiting Gil, who pounded the ball
to the back of the net, giving FIU its first win over a ranked
opponent this year.
Gil's goal capped off a classic battle displayed by two storied
programs.
The contest was a game of two halves, with FIU dominating
the first period by creating numerous scoring chances. The Blue
& Gold finally capitalized in the 23rd minute when John Pulido
put home a cross from Allen Handy.
The second half belonged to Columbia, with the Lions upping
their intensity and pressuring the Golden Panthers at every turn.
A FIU foul 23 yards out in front of the penalty box set up direct
kick for Columbia, which Tommy McMenemy placed brilliantly in
the back of the net.
Both teams continued to battle throughout regulation as Columbia
held off several last-minute gasps by FIU, setting the stage
for Gil's heroics.
The Golden Panthers, wh had previously lost to then-13th-ranked
UCLA on Sept. 1 and then-15th-ranked St. John's on Sept. 6, improved
to 3-4-0 on the year while the previously-unbeaten Lions fell
to 4-1-0.
FAU 4, WVU 3 -- Florida Atlantic striker Bjorn
Masson erupted for a first-half hatrick which proved to be too
much for West Virginia as his Owls edged the Mountaineers, 4-3,
in the first game of the 2002 UMBRO Classic hosted by Florida
International.
Masson netted his first goal in the 10th minute on a give-and-go
with Gustavo Alencar. The Mountaineers quickly equaled the match
in the 11th minute when Devon McTavish headed the ball to the
feet of Aaron Pitchkolan, who slid the ball past FAU goalkeeper
Torbjan Hompland. Masson sustained the back-and-forth action
when he took a Preben Nilsen pass and tapped it home to reclaim
the lead.
In the 33rd minute, FAU's Kristopher Aarskog kept pace with
a Alencar chip up the middle and beat his defender for a 3-1
lead. Masson earned his hatrick in the 38th minute when he utilized
a wall pass from Aarskog pushed it past WVU 'keeper Chris McKinney.
However, the second half was a different story as McKinney
made the move to forward at halftime and sparked a Mountaineer
comeback. A pinpoint cross from Dwayne Grant-Higgins on the right
side of the field found the head of McKinney, who put it away
to cut the lead to two. In the 76th minute, McKinney threaded
a pass to Sean Sexstone who's 25-yard blast hit the crossbar
and rebounded to Aaron Pitchkolan, who put it away.
The Mountaineers continued to pressure the FAU backline, but
were unsuccessful for the remainder of the match.
The win improves FAU to 2-5-1 on the year while WVU drops
to 3-5-0. |