PUTTING MY CLEATS IN MY MOUTH: Cougars 0, Knights 4 (blog date Oct 25, 2013)

Houston Cougars 0, Central Florida Knights 4 
W-D-L: 1-3-10            14-2-2
October 24, 2013
7:00 pm @ University of Houston

The University of Central Florida Lady Knights were going to have none of that baloney. They hit the grass at the Carl Lewis International Complex with every intent to disprove all the RPI-sceptics behind this blog (see blog entry dated October 18, 2013). They were not about to allow a sub-200 team to threaten the top-12 ranking that they have worked so hard to earn, and they were certainly not going to let some crackpot blogger out there discredit everything they have accomplished to get this far up in the national table. Certainly not after winning the Conference USA tournament in 2012 and then retaining eight starters from that squad, five of them seniors, bolstered by the transfer of junior striker Tatiana Coleman from Auburn, where she earned a spot on the All-Southeast Conference First Team last year. Certainly not after going unbeaten over the previous 13 outings leading to this Houston trip, outscoring their new American Athletic Conference opponents 18 to 6 to sit squarely atop the league standings. The Lady Knights brought a relentless game, possessing the ball overwhelmingly, distributing it all over the field, and limiting the Cougars to six total shots, only two of which were on target, while blasting at keeper Sydney George with ten on goal.

Tatiana Coleman (3) wreaks havoc in Houston's defensive third. Tatiana transferred from Auburn where she made the All-Southeast Conference First Team last year.

Combining bursts of speed with quick smart moves, Tatiana gets by even the most solid defenders like Lexa Green (30), Sydnie Green (12) and Danielle Muñoz (red 3)...

...to either set up goals...

...or score them herself. Tatiana logs two assists and a goal on the final stats sheet.

Cougar keeper Sydney George (00) has a very busy day against the likes of Megan Fish (20)...

...and a high-powered UCF offense attacking from all directions.

Facing ten total shots on target by Central Florida, Sydney George (00) spends a lot of time on the grass.

Jennifer Martin (5) takes on Courtney Dudley (26) and Shayne Clewett (4) on UCF's left flank.

Jennifer, who finished last season second on the team in goals scored, is a critical component in the Lady Knights' offensive drives.

Jennifer Martin (5) gets deep into opposing territory...

...to deliver deadly crosses, even under intense pressure. She sets up Tatiana Coleman's icer in the 64th minute.

Defender Shayne Clewett (4) has her hands full with freshwoman Kayla Adamek (6), who nets her eighth goal on the season.

Lexa Green (30), Sydnie Green (12), Natalie Juncos (26) and the rest of the Cougar defense are under heavy pressure all night from one of the most potent offenses in the country.

Amanda Wilkin (15) escapes to gain space in Cougar territory.

The Coogs manage to threaten. Alexis Weaver (5) drives against Alex Piercy (21), Ashley Nicol (2) and Conference USA's 2012 Defensive Player of the Year Marissa Diggs (32).

Ashley and Marissa anchor a Lady Knight defense that posted a school and Conference USA record 15 shutouts last year, and have allowed only nine goals over the first 18 matches prior to this road trip.

So much for my optimism since the last match on this blog - thanks to UCF, I now put my cleats in my mouth.

(All photos by Kokoy Severino.)

UPCOMING MATCHES OF THE WEEK: 

Friday Oct 25 Grambling State University (#325) @ TSU (#327) 7:00 pm (SWAC)

Sunday Oct 27 University of South Florida (#174) @ U of H (#232) 1:00 pm (C-USA)

Monday Nov 4 Conference USA Tournament 1st Round: 
              University of Tulsa (#93) vs University of Alabama-Birmingham (#114) @ Rice 4:30 
Monday Nov 4 Conference USA Tournament 1st Round: 
              Rice (#154) vs Marshall University (#131) @ Rice 7:00 pm
Wednesday Nov 6 Conference USA Tournament Quarter-Finals: 
              Florida International University (#158) vs UNT (#92) @ Rice 4:30 
              University of North Carolina-Charlotte (#112) vs Marshall (#131) @ Rice 7:00 pm
Friday Nov 8 Conference USA Tournament Semi-Finals:
              Colorado College vs East Carolina University @ Rice 4:30 
              UNT vs Charlotte @ Rice 7:00 pm
Saturday Nov 9 Red River Athletic Conference Tournament Final:
              Our Lady of the Lake University vs University of Texas-Brownsville 
              @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 5:00 pm
Sunday Nov 10 Southwest Athletic Conference Tournament Final:
              Jackson State University vs Alabama State University @ Houston Amateur Sports Park 11:00 am
Sunday Nov 10 Conference USA Tournament Final:
             CC vs UNT @ Rice 1:00 pm
Friday-Sunday Nov 15-17 NCAA Division I Tournament 1st Round @ Campus TBA
Sunday Nov 24 NCAA Division I Tournament 3rd Round @ Campus TBA
Friday-Saturday Nov 29-30 NCAA Division I Tournament Quarter-Finals @ Campus TBA
Saturday Dec 7 NCAA Division III Tournament Final @ Blossom Stadium, San Antonio 1:30 pm 

(Kokoy's Matches of the Week are those which I attended.) 

Kokoy Severino has been coaching junior high school soccer in the public school system of the Greater Houston area for 20 years. He holds a National Youth Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, two coaching certifications from the United States Soccer Federation, and a Master in Educational Leadership degree from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. His research focuses on the relationship between interscholastic competitive soccer and the academic success of at-risk students. He returns regularly to his native country of the Philippines and conducts soccer training sessions for economically disadvantaged youths.

"This blog is to document the intensity, the depth, the passion, the strategic and tactical nuances, the stars, the spectacular play that I witness in the women's teams at the college level. And in doing so, it is my hope that others might be inspired to discover for themselves the beautiful game brought by the women." (Kokoy, from blog entry dated Nov 4, 2012)