After some ups and downs, the 2010 UT men’s soccer team reached a milestone that they have been striving for from the beginning of the season. On Oct. 9, Tampa defeated their first nationally ranked opponent of the season, although not without having to jump a couple of hurdles before that.
UT traveled to Miami Shores to face Barry University on Oct. 2 to compete in their third Sunshine State Conference matchup of the season.
Barry got the early lead 15 minutes into the game to make the score 1-0. With two minutes left in the first half, Tampa’s senior Lister Warren responded with an unassisted goal to tie the game.
Warren’s scoring did not end with the first goal.
At the 59 minute mark UT’s Jordan Moses fed the ball to Warren, who then chipped it into the net from 50 yards away, making the score 2-1.
Things were looking good for Tampa until the end of the second half when Barry came down the field to score the tying goal. There were less than seven minutes left in the game.
When the 90 minutes were up, the match was forced to go into its first overtime. After a scoreless ten minutes, the two teams began their second OT. A little less than three minutes in, the same Barry player who scored their second goal to tie the game, netted the golden goal to win it.
Tampa’s regular season record fell to 6-4 and 1-2 in conference play.
The UT squad returned home to play Nova Southeastern University, yet another conference rival, on Oct. 6 at Pepin Stadium.
After a slow start to the game, the energy lifted when Spartan sophomore Kemal Malcolm took a hard shot, firing the ball passed Nova’s goalkeeper. Greg Sasser collected the assist.
The score was 1-0.
About 20 minutes later, Tampa was awarded a penalty kick. The kick was taken by junior Ryan Griffin. Griffin netted the ball for his sixth goal on the season. At 57 minutes, the scoreboard read 2-0 with Tampa in the lead.
With a comfortable 2-0 lead, Tampa did not let up. 66 minutes into the game, senior Andrej Gulan put another goal past Nova’s goalie to increase the score to 3-0. Junior David Gulec received the assist on the goal.
Ten minutes later, at the 76 minute mark, Nova scored what would be their only goal of the game.
“We really controlled the pace of the match from the opening whistle and were able to get some great minutes from guys off the bench,” Head Coach Adrian Bush said.
The clock ran out and the final score recorded was 3-1 with Tampa finishing on top.
UT’s record improved to 7-4 and 2-2 in the SSC.
On Oct. 9, Tampa played at home against the No. 24 nationally ranked Clayton State University. CSU was 10-1 before the start of the match and deemed a major competitor.
After a silent 37 minutes, Tampa’s Lister Warren took a shot and put the ball past CSU’s goalkeeper. Ryan Griffin received the assist, while Gregory Sasser caused a key deflection allowing the goal to be made.
The next 53 minutes did not go easy. Tensions ran high and rough play was seen by both teams on both sides of the pitch.
By the end of the game, only one UT player received a yellow card, while Clayton State players were given a total of three.
Although CSU did not go down quietly, they did, in fact, go down. Tampa won the match 1-0 and enthusiastically celebrated their big win.
Tampa’s record bettered to 8-4 on the season. Coach Bush noted what has been said about the UT squad around the NCAA.
“Many counted us out this year with losing so many players, but we felt confident in the guys returning and the new players have really fit in well,” he said.
Bush mentioned a few chief names on the Tampa team that are helping them win.
“Most of our guys have stepped up. Lister [Warren] and Kemal [Malcolm] are more explosive in the attack,” Bush stated. “Ryan Griffin has been nothing short of phenomenal the entire year, whether it is in the back, at center-mid, or forward.”
Coach Bush explained that these types of accomplishments, both big and small, are a result of not just a few key players, but of the entire squad itself.
“We are young with a lot of depth but these guys have made a huge difference this year. It is a team of 30 guys that are willing to sacrifice for group success,” he said.
He then commented on the reoccurring positive attitude of the squad.
“I believe in this team and I think they are starting to believe in themselves,” Bush said.
The Spartans are back in action against Florida Tech on Oct. 15 at 5:30 p.m.
Maya Todd can be reached at mtodd@spartans.ut.edu.