No. 9 men's soccer dumps UAB, improves to 8-0-0

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

Men's Soccer Defeats UAB In Conference Opener
Castillo, Ivo and Soto Score For The Mustangs

Sept. 25, 2010

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (SMU) - The No. 9 SMU men's soccer team defeated UAB 3-2 to open conference play Friday night. Juan Castillo, Arthur Ivo and Josue Soto all scored for the Mustangs. SMU moves to 8-0-0 on the season and is 1-0-0 in Conference USA action.

"There's nothing better than getting your first conference win against a good team on the road," said head coach Tim McClements. "We've had a good run in non-conference play, but that doesn't have any bearing on the conference - which is the most important part."

Castillo continued his solid offensive play by opening the scoring in the 25th minute. After receiving the ball, he settled and fired a shot around the 18 for a 1-0 SMU lead. The goal was Castillo's team-leading seventh of the game and sixth in as many games.

Ivo picked up his third goal of the season in the 43rd minute. Midfielder Payton Hickey played the ball to Ivo who one-timed a shot from just outside the 18 to give the Mustangs a two goal lead.

In the 53rd minute, Soto put SMU up 3-0. Castillo sent the ball to Soto in the right side of the box who then sent the ball upper-90 on the far side of the net. The goal was Soto's second of the season and his first game-winner.

UAB got on the board when Anthony King converted a penalty kick in the 82nd minute. Less than five minutes later, Gentry Smith headed in a goal from about six yards out to bring cut the SMU lead to one. The comeback was not enough as the SMU defense held strong though, earning the 3-2 win for SMU.

"They're a very difficult team to play against," said McClements. "They've got great size. From a physical standpoint, it was a very demanding match. I felt like we had good flow and were able to possess the ball and control well. When we gave up the handball in the box, it gave them a little bit of momentum. They played really direct and then scored again on a header. It got close at the end, but I credit our guys for fighting back and earning the win."

SMU faces Jacksonville in Birmingham Sunday at noon to close out non-conference play for the Mustangs.

[Junior]

Are we just beating teams we are supposed to beat, or are we much improved from last year?

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Nice game. It's kind of bad to go from 3-0 to 3-2 late, but a win is a win.

Keep it going and stay in the top 10!