Knights Use Memphis Mistakes, 3 1st-half Goals to Advance to AAC Tournament Final

The No. 1-seeded UCF Knights will play a rematch of the regular-season finale against the No. 2-seeded USF Bulls in the American Athletic Conference Tournament final.

By
Victor Tan
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University of Central Florida forward Stefanie Sanders shoots the ball during a 3-0 win over the Memphis Tigers at the UCF Soccer & Track Complex on Friday, Nov. 3, 2017. (Photo by Victor Tan / New Day Review)
(Photo by Victor Tan / New Day Review)

Match Recap

ORLANDO, Fla. – The No. 1-seeded UCF Knights faced unfamiliar pressure from the fourth-seeded Memphis Tigers. Nonetheless, the Knights (1-0) extended their unbeaten stretch to 15 after returning to their usual, dominating form with a 3-0 win over Memphis (1-1) at the UCF Soccer & Track Complex Friday night in the American Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals.

Scoring started early for the Knights, but it wasn’t off a UCF foot that the Knights would score their first goal of the match. Just four minutes into the match, midfielder Kayla Adamek found the ball alone down the right flank and penetrated along the end-line. Adamek then sent a line-drive cross over the face of the Memphis net, and Tigers defender Stasia Mallin mistouched the ball into the net.

“Own-goals happen all the time. It’s unfortunate, but I still wanna give our team the credit because they’re the ones that got the ball into the box and kinda had numbers all around it,” Knights head coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak said after the win. “Of course, we’ll take it, but I think if you watch back video, I think we really created that, you know? And, like I said, own-goals happen all the time, so I don’t think that one goal took them out of their game, you know?”

Knights leading scorer Morgan Ferrara added to her total no more than four minutes later. Dina Orschmann, the AAC Rookie of the Year, drew a foul inside the box to give Ferrara the opportunity from the spot.

It wasn’t until the 34th minute when UCF scored again. Apart from their fourth- and eighth-minute scores, the Knights, who average more than nine shots per first half this season, mustered just five shots (four on-target) in the first half. UCF’s minor scoring drought ended when Stefanie Sanders received a through ball down the middle part of the pitch for a one-on-one look with Memphis goalkeeper Elizabeth Moberg. Sanders struck it past Moberg for a 3-0 lead.

“Dina had the ball, and I was, like, screaming at her to pass me the ball,” Sanders said after the match. “And I just had to shoot the ball, and it was in. So I was excited. It’s always good to score a goal.”

Sanders was denied a brace in both the 62nd and 89th minutes. In the former, Sanders found herself on another breakaway chance against Moberg, but she took one too many chances, as Moberg came off her line to gather the ball. Sanders’ 89th-minute effort from inside the box went directly to Moberg’s mitt.

“It was good. It’s a good feeling to play good, like, get the win in the end,” Sanders said. “It’s always good to score.”

Said Roberts Sahaydak on Sanders, a first-year Knight: “Stef is just such a young, talented player. We are really excited about her. I mean, she has come back from an ACL [injury], so she’s not even at her best yet, which is so exciting. I think with every game, she is getting better, but I don’t think we’ll see her at her very bet probably until next season when she’s had a full, you know, year of recovery. She’s doing great things at 80 percent, and that’s pretty cool to see.”

In the 69th minute, Memphis had, perhaps, its best chance of the match. Marie Levasseur received the ball inside the left part of UCF’s box and crossed it over the face of the UCF net. Her pass was met by Elizabeth Woerner for a one-timer, but her shot went narrowly wide right.

“Actually, like the USF [Bulls] game, the last game we played, we had a lot of pressure there, and we were not able to play as well as usually,” goalkeeper Vera Varis said after the match. “So, now, we went through that, like, during this week in practice that we need to play out…and keep the composure under pressure. So I think we did, like, a good job with that, like, the whole team.”

Memphis found its first usable chance early in the second half when Jessica Lisi was led into the middle of UCF’s box. With Maura Aman trailing, Lisi took one too many touches, allowing Aman to stab her foot inside for the clean tackle.

“Yeah, Vera’s been solid all season, and there’s a lot of trust,” Roberts Sahaydak said. “And I loved her communication tonight. I’m sure all of you heard. You know, any time the ball was around her space, I mean, she was so confident and demanding, like, ‘This is my ball,’ and that just makes things way more clear for her defenders around her, so we just love her presence back there and her confidence, and it’s been great.”

Woman of the Match: F Stefanie Sanders

Sanders finished the match with a game-high four shots (game-high three on-target) and a goal in 49 minutes off the bench. She narrowly missed out on a multi-goal performance, as she was stopped on a one-on-one opportunity in the 62nd minute. Sanders was also thwarted in the 89th minute, as her close-range effort went directly to Moberg’s mitt.

What’s next?

No. 1-seeded UCF will next play No. 2-seeded USF in the AAC Tournament final on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Knights, Bulls Battle for Another AAC Title in AAC Tournament Final

UCF will once again host its rival from down I-4. Both teams last met in both their 2017 regular-season finales on Oct. 27. The double-overtime rivalry bout concluded in a 1-1 draw that effectively made the Knights the outright regular-season conference champions.

In that matchup, USF scored on a penalty kick with approximately 10 seconds to go in the first half. UCF equalized off an Orschmann goal and Ferrara assist.

As per usual, Roberts Sahaydak expects another close contest with the Bulls, as she has acknowledged the consistent narrow results between her team and USF.

“[A close game with USF] is hard to avoid,” the fifth-year Knights boss said. “I just think South Florida’s a very good team, and they really disrupt us and our style because they are physical, they are athletic. And so are we. You know, championship matches are never pretty, and it’s always like that. So we’re ready for that. So, I think it’s just hard to avoid. It’s gonna be a great game for everybody to watch.”

Prior to UCF’s draw with USF, UCF was riding a 13-game unbeaten streak, drawing just once with the Cincinnati Bearcats on Sept. 21. Apart from that one blemish, UCF out-scored its opponents 29-4.

Highlights

NDR Notes

  • The Knights played in their fourth AAC Tournament semifinal, also advancing to semifinals in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
  • UCF and Memphis met for the 19th time on Friday.
  • Entering the matchup, Memphis led overall series 9-8-1.
  • Ferrara scored her 13th goal of the season.
  • Sanders scored her fourth goal of the season.

Scoring

Time Team Goal-scorer Assisted by
4’ UCF Knights Stasia Mallin OWN GOAL
8’ UCF Knights Morgan Ferrara PENALTY
34’ UCF Knights Stefanie Sanders Dina Orschmann

Statistics and Starting Lineups

Goals Assists Shots Shots on Goal Possession %
UCF Knights 3 1 9 7 n/a
Memphis Tigers 0 0 11 3 n/a

UCF Knights starting lineup (4-3-3): Vera Varis (GK); Saga Fredriksson, Maura Aman, Kathellen Sousa, Carrie Lawrence; Katriina Kuoksa, Zandy Soree, Bridget Callahan; Dina Orschmann, Morgan Ferrara, Kayla Adamek

Memphis Tigers starting lineup (4-3-3): Elizabeth Moberg (GK); Sessen Stevens, Sydney Kingston, Olivia Guathier, Stasia Mallin; Serena Dolan, Catherine Levasseur, Jessica Lisi; Marie Levasseur, Mikayla Morton, Elizabeth Woerner

For more on the Knights, as they prepare for the Bulls and the AAC Tournament final, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.

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