/
.
#3 Virginia Men's Soccer Ties #7 UCLA in Virginia Soccer Classic, 2-2
Story Links
Sept. 2, 2001
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The #3 ranked University of Virginia men’s soccer team battled the #7 ranked UCLA Bruins to a 2-2 tied in the final match of the 2001 Virginia Soccer Classic in front of 2,592 spectators at Kl?ckner Stadium this afternoon. Each team enjoyed a one-goal lead in regulation before playing through two scoreless overtime periods.
Virginia jumped on the scoreboard first and took a 1-0 lead when Kyle Martino (Westport, Conn./Staples) scored on a free-kick at 25:50. Martino fired a shot from 25 yards out that appeared to be directed to teammate Jonathan Cole (Annapolis, Md./McDonogh) for a cross, but Cole let the ball pass right behind the heel of his foot and the shot beat UCLA goalkeeper Zach Wells to the right corner of the net for the first goal of the game. The Bruins knotted the contest at 1-1 just over 15 minutes later at the 41:03 mark when Scot Thompson headed in a cross just over the top of the outstretched arms of UVa goalkeeper David Comfort (Richmond, Va./Monacan) on a cross of off a free-kick sent by teammate Ryan Futagaki. The two teams went into halftime tied at 1-1.
UCLA took its first lead of the game at the 55:25 mark of the contest when Tim Pierce ran out on a breakaway, fired a shot that was deflected by the Cavaliers’ Comfort, then gathered the rebounded shot and headed the ball into the goal to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead. Trailing by a goal, Virginia’s Alecko Eskandarian (Montvale, N.J./Bergen Catholic) scored the equalizer at 70:52 after he weaved his way through the UCLA defense and then fired a one-timer from 27 yards out that found nothing but the right side of the Bruins’ goal to tie the game at 2-2. Eskandrian’s goal proved to be the game-tying score, as both teams battled through two scoreless overtime periods.
UVa’s Comfort gathered five saves in goal, while UCLA’s Wells collected 10 in between the pipes for the Bruins.
With the tie, Virginia’s record moves to 1-0-1 overall, while UCLA’s record improves to 0-1-1 on the season. The Cavaliers are now 1-4-1 all-time against the Bruins. UVa finished in second place in the tournament, followed by UCLA in third place. Maryland won the tournament after going 2-0-0, and Liberty finished in fourth place by finishing 0-0-2.
Virginia’s Cole, Eskandarian, Marshall Leonard (Midland, Ga./Shaw) were each named to the All-Tournament team, as were UCLA’s Nelson Akwari and Cliff McKinley.
The Cavaliers will return to action on Friday, September 7th when Virginia faces the American Eagles in the 2001 Fila/Maryland Classic in College Park, Md. The contest is scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m. and will be played at Ludwig Field on the campus of the University of Maryland. UVa will also play the Creighton Bluejays on Sunday, September 9th at 12:00 p.m. in the tournament.
Scoring 1 2 1OT 2OT FUCLA (0-1-1) 1 1 0 0 2Virginia (1-0-1) 1 1 0 0 2
Goals: UVa 2 – Martino @ 25:50, Eskandarian @ 70:52.UCLA 2 – Thompson @ 41:03 (Futagaki), Pierce @ 55:25.Shots: UVa 23, UCLA 12.Corner Kicks: UVa 8, UCLA 8.Saves: UCLA 10, UVa 5.Fouls: UCLA 30, UVa 23.Cautions: UVa 2 – Totten, LeBlanc. UCLA 2 – Futagaki, Griffin.Attendance: 2,592.
2001 Virginia Soccer Classic Tournament Results
Contest Opponents ScoreGame 1 Maryland def. UCLA 2-1 (2OT)Game 2 Virginia def. Liberty 2-1Game 3 Maryland def. Liberty 2-1Game 4 Virginia tied UCLA 2-2 (2OT)
2001 Virginia Soccer Classic Tournament Standings
Place Team Record1st Maryland 2-0-02nd Virginia 1-0-13rd UCLA 0-1-14th Liberty 0-2-0
2001 Virginia Soccer Classic All-Tournament Team
Player Team HonorPhilip Salyer Maryland MVPA.J. Herrera MarylandBeckett Hollenbach MarylandScott Buete MarylandMarshall Leonard VirginiaJonathan Cole VirginiaAlecko Eskandarian VirginiaNelson Akwari UCLACliff McKinley UCLADean Short LibertyBen Strawbridge Liberty
— UVa —