Comeback Bid Falls Short for Tigers, Drop Decision 2-1

Saturday, October 27

Memphis, Tenn.

7:00 PM

University of Memphis

7-5-4 (2-3-1AAC)

#13 UCF

11-2-2 (4-1-1AAC)

UCF

Memphis

Photo by: Michael Wade

Comeback Bid Falls Short for Tigers, Drop Decision 2-1

Oct 27, 2018 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – After falling behind at half, Memphis was unable to finish the comeback, falling to UCF 2-1 Saturday night.

Chris Mikus' goal brought the Tigers within a score, but UCF held on by a thread to hand the Tigers the loss.

The Knights got off to a fast start, scoring twice in the first eight minutes, putting the Tigers in an early hole.

"Individually and as a team, if we play like we did in the first half against a good team like UCF, we were lucky we weren't down more," Head coach Richard Mulrooney said of the first half. "It's got to be a lesson learned, that on Senior Day, to play like that, that was a gut check."

Memphis tried to rally, but the Tigers were unsuccessful through the first 45 minutes.

Shots from David Zalzman almost narrowed the gap with a pair of headers, but UCF kept the Tigers at bay.

The second half opened with more shots from UCF, but the Memphis defense shifted the momentum of the game.

In the 65^th minute, Chris Mikus put the Tigers on the board, kicking in a shot off of a cross from Alexandros Ierides. Mikus now leads the team with four goals on the year.

Reenergized, Memphis turned the corner and became the aggressor. Shots throughout the second half were saved, but the Tigers were the stronger team in the closing minutes.

After a frenzied final 10 minutes expired, the Tigers were unable to put the equalizer in the net, falling just short.

"It wasn't about what I said about the technical stuff, but sometimes you just have to bust it a little harder," Mulrooney had to say. "We created opportunities, and we were able to finish one."

Memphis looks ahead now to next Friday as the team finishes the regular season against USF in Tampa.