Men's Soccer Earns Fourth-Straight Win in 2-1 AAC Victory over UConn

Saturday, October 26

Philadelphia, Pa.

7:00 PM

Temple University

7-6-1

Uconn

4-10-1

UCONN

Temple

Men's Soccer Earns Fourth-Straight Win in 2-1 AAC Victory over UConn

10.26.19 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA – The Temple men's soccer team (7-6-1, 3-1-1 AAC) earned its fourth-straight win on Saturday night, picking up its first-ever victory over UConn (4-10-1, 1-4-0 AAC) in a physical American Athletic Conference showdown. Two defensemen backed the scoring for the Owls, as sophomore Mickael Borger put the squad on the board first and junior captain Pierre Cayet netted his second header goal in as many games to seal the 2-1 victory over the Huskies.

How it Happened
> The Owls got off to a quick start against a challenging UConn squad when Borger sent a cross in from the right flank just seven minutes in. Aided by the slick conditions to start the match, Borger's cross took a good bounce and nearly slipped into the right corner but was denied by the goalpost to keep the score notched at zero.
> The Cherry and White have proved to be extremely dangerous on set pieces this season and continued the trend against the Huskies. In the 26th minute, sophomore Esteban Suarez sent in a free kick from about 25 yards out that ricocheted off the left goalpost. A well-positioned Borger darted in to bury the deflection and score his second goal of the season to put the Owls up, 1-0.
> UConn responded eight minutes later, netting the equalizer in the 34th minute. Jake Dengler capitalized off a Temple miscue in the box to score his second goal of the season.
> Freshman Sean Karani was active in the attacking third all night for the Owls. In the 39th minute, Karani dribbled through traffic and slotted a dangerous ball across the mouth of the goal, but the UConn backline held strong to deny sophomore Jalen Campbell a strong opportunity in the center.
> The Huskies were forced to play with 10 men on the pitch after a red card was given to Dengler in the 53rd minute. Temple capitalized on the advantage and continued to press the Huskies as each team looked for the go-ahead goal.
> The Owls' urgency paid off in the 61st minute when they earned three corner kicks in the span of one minute to test the UConn backline. On the third attempt, senior captain Lukas Fernandes sent an in-swinging corner to the far post, where Cayet positioned himself to bury a header goal and give Temple the lead. Cayet's goal was his second in as many games, scoring nearly the exact same way in Temple's 2-1 win over Louisville on Tuesday.

Game Notes
> Temple's defenders have been formidable scoring threats this season, as both of the team's goals against UConn came from members of the back line. The Cherry and White back four have now produced six goals so far this season.
> Tonight's victory over the Huskies marked the Owls' fourth-straight win. This is the Cherry and White's first four-game win streak since the squad rattled off four wins at the start of the 2016 season.
> Simon Lefebvre has been a force between the posts for Temple as one of the conference's top goalkeepers. The senior has not allowed more than one goal per match in the month of October, and has only conceded multiple goals on two occasions this season—against No. 13 Georgetown and No. 12 UCF.

From the Coach
> "We've talked a lot about momentum for the whole season, and we're at a place where we have some positive momentum building for sure," said head coach Brian Rowland. "We're happy to be winning games and continuing this momentum and we're going to remain very focused on the things we've been doing over the last couple of months to make sure we can keep it going. Four-straight wins is good affirmation that we're doing things the right way and are staying focused and tuned in, and now we keep moving forward one game at a time."

Up Next
> The Owls will look to find their fifth-straight win when they return to action on Friday, Nov. 1 to take on Tulsa. Kickoff for American Athletic Conference battle is set for 8 p.m. ET in Tulsa, Okla.