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News Release

Men's Soccer Heads to Albany for Conference Match With High-Scoring Great Danes

10/17/2008

Coming off an impressive, albeit a losing effort at Virginia Tech on Tuesday night, the UMBC men’s soccer team (5-5-2, 0-2-1 America East) opens a furious stretch run with a conference contest at Albany (8-3-1, 2-1-1 AEC) on Saturday. Match time at Varsity Field is set for 1:00 p.m. The all-time series between the Retrievers and Great Danes is tied at 2-2-1, but UMBC is winless in two previous trips to the New York capital region.

 

Last Game Out:

 

An energized UMBC men’s soccer team outplayed 2007 national semifinalist Virginia Tech, but came up on the short end of a 2-1 overtime decision to the host Hokies. The Retrievers’ winless streak has reached four as UMBC fell to the .500 mark at 5-5-2. VT improved to 5-7-1.

 

UMBC dominated the first half, creating four outstanding scoring opportunities, but they could not cash in. Finally, in the 66th minute, freshman forward Andrew Bulls (Millersville, Md./McDonough) got on the board to snap a scoreless streak of 395 consecutive minutes. Senior midfielder Kevin Gnatiko (Montgomery Village, Md./Watkins Mill) played a short corner kick to senior back L.J. Pijnenburg. Pijnenburg’s driving serve got beyond the Hokie defense, and Bulls flicked it in on a header for his team-high sixth goal of the season.

 

But the Hokies awakened and after UMBC netminder Steve King (Baltimore, Md./Archbishop Curley) made a one-on-one save in the 68th minute, Tech tied the game in unusual fashion in the 77th  minute. UMBC failed to clear the ball in their zone and a Hokie player got behind the defense as an arcing ball was played into him. King collided with him in the box and the hosts were awarded a penalty kick. King made the initial save on James Gilson’s attempt, diving to his right to make the stop, but Gilson pounced on the rebound and knocked it inside the far right post.

 

The game went to overtime and UMBC fired the first salvo as Gnatiko’s 23-yard shot just sailed over the crossbar in the first minute. But on the next possession, UMBC mishandled the ball deep in their defensive end and Gilson stole the ball and his cross to a wide open Brendan Dunn was headed in past King from close range to end the contest.

 

Notes

 

With the loss, UMBC fell to 1-2-2 in overtime this season. The Retrievers also lost for the second time this season after taking a 1-0 lead.

 

Steve King was brilliant vs. the Hokies, coming up with a career high 12 saves, including a pair in the first half from point-blank range. His previous high of nine saves occurred vs. Vermont in the 2006 season. He now has 240 career stops, fifth on UMBC’s all-time list and ten saves shy of taking over fourth place.

 

UMBC registered a season-high 22 shots vs. VT and outshot an opponent (22-20) for the first time this season.

 

Andrew Bulls has scored six of UMBC’s 14 goals on the season and five of the last six. He has surpassed the 2007 team season leader, Andrew Gillis, who recorded five goals last season. Bulls is fifth in America East in scoring with 14 points.

 

Pijnenburg’s assist on the Bulls’ goal on Tuesday was his first point in his 30th UMBC contest. It was the 11th career assist for Gnatiko, but the first point of the 2008 season for the senior midfielder. Gnatiko made just his fourth start of the season vs. the Hokies and is UMBC’s active points leader with 33 points (11 goals, 11 assists).

 

UMBC defeated Albany, 2-0 in Baltimore last season. Sophomore defender Chris Williams scored his first career goal, a game-winning score and UMBC also recorded an own goal. It was Steve King’s second career shutout vs. the Great Danes; he posted a 3-0 win over Albany in his freshman year of 2005. Senior Dan Bulls recorded an assist in that contest.

 

The Retrievers have dropped 1-0 (2004) and 3-1 (2006) decisions in Albany. Gnatiko scored on a penalty kick in the ’06 contest.

 

The Great Danes are coming off a 0-0 double overtime draw at home on Wednesday. They are 2-0 in the league on the road and 0-1-1 at Varsity Field. Albany leads the conference in scoring, averaging 2.08 goals per game. Claudio Dantas leads the Great Danes and is second in the league in scoring with six goals and six assists to date.