USF Men’s and Women’s soccer both completed matches this past weekend as the regular season nears to an end in the coming weeks.

The women enjoyed a victory trip to Greenville as they defeated ECU 3-1. The men had a hotly contested War on I-4 that saw the Knights prevail 1-0.

USF Women’s Soccer

Continuing with the theme of the regular season for USF, they took a plethora of opportunities on net to keep the opposing goalkeeper on their toes. Their match against ECU was no different as they outshot the pirates 19-5, with 12 of those 19 shots coming on frame, forcing the Pirate goalie to 9 saves on the day.

USF got on the board first in the 21st minute, when senior Aubrey Megrath’s shot on goal was deflected to the foot of senior Andrea Hauksdottir, who slotted it past the goalie for a 1-0 lead. That scoreline would stand until halftime, with the Bulls outshooting ECU 14-1 in the first half alone. The Pirates would eventually tie up the game in the second half, with a goal coming in the 51st minute that beat sophomore goalkeeper Syndey Martinez.

The Bulls would get the lead once again a few minutes later, with a goal coming from junior Fanny Pelletier-Laroche on an unassisted play to give the Green and Gold a 2-1 edge early in the second half.

Evelyne Viens would not be denied on this day, with eight shots and five coming on goal, a ball ending up in the back of the net was sure to come, and in the 62nd minute she scored an absolute stunner.

Viens took a pass from Aubrey Megrath, and after turning and dribbling on her approach to goal, she took a strike from well past the box right over the head of the ECU goalkeeper to bring us to the final scoreline of 3-1. Sophomore Sydney Martinez would get the start in net for USF, as she collected three saves on the day. USF improved to 12-3 overall and 7-1 in the conference, with this victory clinching a bye in the AAC tournament.

USF Men’s Soccer

USF Men’s Soccer faced arguably their toughest test to date this season as they took on rival UCF in the War on I-4 at Corbett Stadium. Rocking the Slime uniforms, the Bulls challenged the Knights in a competitive game, with UCF barely edging USF in shots (16-13), and even on shots on goal (five each). The first half was shaky for USF, with the Knights pulling an 8-3 shot advantage and a few unforced errors leading to opportunities for UCF. However, the two teams would remain scoreless going into the second half.

UCF would quickly gain the lead in the second half, with a goal coming in the 49th minute by Jonah Schmalbach. The Bulls would outshoot the Knights in the second half 10-8, with plenty of quality chances. Freshman Victor Claudel had a chance in the 70th minute that was punched away by UCF goalkeeper Yannik Oetti. However, the Bulls would remain off the scoresheet, and the Golden Knights pulled away to a 1-0 victory.

Senior Harrison Devenish-Meares would get the start in goal for USF, as he collected four saves on the evening to add to his stellar regular season statistics. With the loss, USF falls to 8-5-1 on the year, and 2-3 overall (with the Tulsa game still hanging in the balance for AAC consideration).

Both teams return to action this week, with USF Men’s soccer getting a home match against Cincinnati on Friday, Nov. 1st, and USF Women’s soccer rounding out their regular season with a trip to Oviedo as they face UCF in the War on I-4.