TU & ORU Soccer Recaps

TU Ties UCF

The Tulsa men's soccer team battled UCF to a 1-1 double overtime tie on Saturday night at the Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium. TU concluded the regular season with a 9-5-2 record and a 5-2-1 mark in the American Athletic Conference, while the Knights moved to 2-9-5 overall and 1-3-4 in the league.

“Ray started us out playing well in the first half, good ball through by Akeil, and Ray took the shot well, but our passing wasn't sharp and we weren't happy at halftime up 1-0,” Head Coach Tom McIntosh said. “It just wasn't a performance that was good enough. Rollie came in and gave us some good minutes, but we were disappointed in the first half. The game got fairly wide open in the second half, but we didn't do a good enough job putting away our chances. Our decision making and our finishing wasn't what it needed to be. This is a game we need to learn from and do a better job next time out.”

Ray Saari put Tulsa on the board with 15:24 ticked off the clock as he took a forward pass from Akeil Barrett up the field and punched one in the lower left corner. This was Saari's sixth goal of the season.

Walker Dawkins evened the score at the 70:50 mark as he punched one in from 12 yards out up the middle off a pass from Phil Hicks.

Tulsa had a 17-6 lead in shots, including a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal, and a 6-5 lead in corner kicks.

Saari and Barrett each had a team-best four shots, while Austin Neil added three attempts, and six other players had one shot. Jake McGuire logged all 110 minutes between the posts for four saves.

Tulsa will return to action in the American Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday, Nov. 8 beginning at 7:00 pm at the Hurricane Stadium. The opponent will be announced at a later date.

ORU downs Western Illinois

Two first half goals was all the Oral Roberts University men's soccer team needed Saturday as the Golden Eagles handed Western Illinois its first Summit League loss of the season with a 2-0 shutout.

ORU moved its league record to .500 as the Golden Eagles improved to 2-2-1 in Summit League play and 6-7-2 overall, while WIU dropped to 8-5-3 and 3-1-1. The Leathernecks entered the match ranked fourth in NSCAA West Region poll.

The Golden Eagles netted their first goal of the match in the 35th minute as Tarik Salkicic crossed the ball into the box that was deflected by Jacob Bjornsen into the net to give the Golden Eagles a 1-0 lead.

In the 43rd minute, Edgardo Mira scored his second goal of the season to give the Golden Eagles a 2-0 lead heading into the break. Zari Prescod was credited with an assist.

Turning Point

WIU allowed an own goal in the 35th minute as a cross by Tarik Salkicic was deflected and slipped past the Leatherneck keeper.

Inside the Box Score

· The Golden Eagles maintained possession much of the match, outshooting the Leathernecks, 12-9.

Edgardo Mira had two shots on target and a goal to lead ORU.Tarik Salkicic, Johnny Chavez and Alex White each took a shot on goal.Ben LaCourse (6-7-2) recorded four saves in the shutout, his third shutout of the season.Erick Bloom led the Leathernecks with three shots, two of which were on goal.Yves Dietreck (8-5-3) took the loss, recording three saves.

News and Notes

· The victory was ORU's first win in Macomb, Illinois, since the 2010 season.

ORU has won consecutive regular season matches over WIU.

Up Next

ORU will host Central Arkansas Tuesday for Senior Night. Kickoff for the Golden Eagles final non-league match of the season is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Case Soccer Complex