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Courtesy: USF Athletics
Cougars Fall Victim to No. 2 Falcons in GNAC Debut
The loss drops the Cougars to 0-1 in conference play and 0-4 on the year. The Falcons moved to 1-0 and 5-0 on the year, their best start in 16 seasons.
USF played even through the opening 18 minutes of play, but near the 19 minute mark the Cougars committed a costly mistake. A USF defender sent a ball back to Kyle Simons in net, which was intercepted by Seattle's Christopher Morris who headed it in for an easy Falcon goal and an early 1-0 lead.
Despite being outshot 11-2 in the opening period, a defensive stance and six saves by Simons in goal sent USF into the half with just a one goal deficit at the break.
Seconds into the second half, the No.2 team in the nation found a crease in the Cougar defense, when Jon Pearman found Anthony Mohammed who fired it just inside the left post to give the home team a 2-0 advantage with 44 minutes to play.
The Cougars would double their shot attempts in the second period, but they struggled to find the back of the net, dropping a 2-0 decision on the road.
Simons had another solid outing for USF in goal and was credited with eight saves. His record in net also falls to 0-4.
Connor Shefte lead USF with two shots, placing one on target, while Derek Granum and Matt Wolfe each recorded one shot, both putting their attempts on goal.
The Falcons held a 19-6 shot advantage, including a 10-3 advantage in shots on goal in the Cougars' first shutout of the season.
USF faces new conference foe Saint Martin's University in Lacey, Wash. Saturday, September 15 at 7 p.m.
