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No. 8 SMU Routs No. 3 Virginia, 5-1
Mustangs Score Decisive Win



No. 8 SMU Routs No. 3 Virginia, 5-1

Sept. 7, 2007

DALLAS (SMU) - The eighth-ranked SMU men's soccer team routed No. 3 Virginia, 5-1, on Friday night, Sept. 7, in the opening night of the Mi Cocina Classic at Westcott Field.

Scott Corbin got the Mustangs on the board in the 11th minute when he knocked in a 20-yard shot from the top left corner of the box off a pass from Jeff Harwell. Ryan Mirsky then redirected a Bruno Guarda cross in the 44th minute to give SMU a 2-0 lead at intermission.

UVa responded with a deflected goal by Neil Barlow in the 54th minute to bring the score to 2-1, but the `Stangs would put the match away just five minutes later when Leone Cruz scored on a beautiful header from Harwell.

Guarda found the net in the 81st minute to put the game further out of reach and Richard Oliva closed out the scoring in the 86th minute.

"As a team, we're still figuring things out," said Mustang Coach Schellas Hyndman. "I thought the biggest difference from our first game until now is that, simply put, our players got better. That's one of our strengths as a coaching staff. We help kids improve. That said, this is quite an accomplishment for SMU soccer."

With the win, SMU improves to 1-0-1, while Virginia drops to 2-1.

SMU will return to the pitch on Sunday, Sept. 9, when the Ponies host Georgetown at 2:30 p.m. to close out the Mi Cocina Classic.

a big win against a legitimate opponent

Huge. Some fans were chanting "overrated!" at the Cavs, but that is not an overhyped team — UVa. is loaded. I've watched SMU soccer for more than two decades, and I can't remember a more impressive performance (doesn't mean there hasn't been a more impressive win — just that it's early and I haven't had my coffee yet.)

UVa's offense runs through Yannick Reyering, a 6-foot-6 beast up front. Coach Hyndman moved Adrian Chevannes back to the right back, and Chevannes, Leone Cruz, Ryan Mirsky and Patrick Clendenny marked Reyering all the way out of the game. He had two shots all night, and neither was a good shot — he was a complete non-factor. Mirsky and Cruz, in particular, played the best games I've ever seen them play.

Last week St. Louis did the same thing to Bruno Guarda, making him ineffective by swarming him wherever he went. Last night, Guarda — like Reyering, a preseason candidate for the Herman Award — broke out, dominating the midfield, creating offensive chances for his teammates (had one or two assists) and scoring a goal on a long feed from Clendenny. Guarda was brilliant, and fellow midfielder Jeff Harwell (two assists) was equally effective, too, with a pair of assists. Up front, Dany Saintus drove the UVa. defense nuts with his speed, breaking past the defense all night and creating chances (and nearly scoring a couple of times).

Overall, sensational performance. Come out to Westcott Field this Sunday to see SMU play Georgetown at 2:30.

Did anybody else notice a few guys (Wileman, Wallace and maybe a few others I don't think I recognised) that play for FC Dallas at the game? They've always been impressed with our performance and this performance in particular really made an impression on them.

This is a huge win for post season for both SMU and Conference USA. Last year the ACC got 6 bids to the NCAA tournament. Yes, the ACC has some great teams, but CUSA bubble teams got passed over last year. This win over one of the best ACC teams could help one of our bubble teams get a pass over an ACC bubble team. It could also help us to get a higher seed than 4th.