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Sunday, September 29, 2002
Men's Soccer holds off West
Virginia
 IU
and FAU represented South Florida well in the 2002 FIU Umbro
Classic as both teams went 2-0 in the tournament with one-goal
victories in both games. However, it was the Owls who took home
the tourney trophy as they scored eight goals compared to four
for FIU.
The Owls Bjorn Masson was named the event's Offensive MVP
after scoring a hatrick on Friday against West Virginia and assisting
on a goal today vs. Columbia. FIU goalkeeper Roy Rosenberg earned
Defensive MVP honors.
FIU 2, WEST VIRGINIA 1 -- A two-minute outburst
to open the second half and strong defensive play in the closing
minutes helped Florida International sneak past West Virginia,
2-1, Sunday in the final day of action of the 2002 FIU Umbro
Classic in Miami.
The Golden Panthers came out firing after halftime when Allen
Handy lifted a cross from the left side to the head of Adam Wilson,
who flicked the ball to a waiting Matias Asorey who headed home
his fourth goal of the year in the 47th minute. Ninety-nine
seconds later a WVU foul set up a direct kick 23 yards out which
Juan Rivera placed in the back of the net.
West Virginia battled back in the 77th minute when Sean Sexstone's
shot was blocked by FIU goalkeeper Roy Rosenberg to the feet
of Rusty Girton, who netted his first goal of the year.
The Golden Panthers outshot the Mountaineers 14-11 with Rosenberg
making five saves and WVU 'keeper Chris McKinney saving four
shots.
The win improves FIU to 4-4-0 while WVU drops to 3-6-0.
The Golden Panthers are off until next Sunday when they host
in-state rival Barry at 7:00 p.m. West Virginia travels Pittsburgh,
Pa., to face Pitt on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.
FAU 4, WVU 3 -- Florida Atlantic won the 2002 FIU
Umbro Classic in dramatic fashion, defeating No. 22 Columbia,
4-3, on a penalty kick Sunday at Florida International's University
Park in Miami.
The deciding goal came in the 80th minute when Josh Garbee
blasted a penalty kick to the right side of the net, giving the
Owls a win in a match that maintained a frantic pace from start
to finish.
FAU set the tone early when Ran Poliker headed in a cross from
Bjorn Masson in the 8th minute. The Owls struck again in the
11th minute when Gustavo Alencar utilized a pass from Scott Rauscher
and some nifty footwork to find the back of the net.
The two-goal lead would not be enough, however, as the Lions
came roaring back in the 48th minute when Jon Mycroft pushed
home a shot on a cross from Thorsteinn Gestsson. The Lions took
advantage of a free kick in the 69th minute as Tommy McMenemy
sent in a cross from the left side to a sliding Alejandro Berthe-Suarez
who pushed the ball across the goal line. The Lions sustained
the momentum from the second goal as McMenemy sent in a cross
to Gestsson, who headed the ball into the back of the net a minute
later.
FAU regained its composure in the 76th minute as David Rutherford
took advantage of Columbia goalkeeper Ben Weisberg knocking down
a Fredrik Stenrud shot which Rutherford placed neatly into the
back of the net.
The game came to a dramatic end in the 80th minute when the
Lions' Brent Chudoba was called for a foul in the box, setting
up Garbee's heroics.
The Owls erupted for eight goals in the round-robin tournament,
allowing them to snag the tourney trophy from host FIU. Both
teams went 2-0 and won each game by one-goal, but FAU won by
number of goals scored as FIU only netted four goals.
FAU moves to 3-5-1 on the year while Columbia, which entered
the tournament undefeated, falls to 4-2-0.
The Owls return home for a game against UCF next Saturday
at 7:30 p.m. The Lions are back in action on Wednesday when
they host St. Francis at 7:00 p.m.
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