SAN FRANCISCO - The USF men's soccer team came out with a mission on Friday evening as they posted a 2-0 victory over Canisius in their home opener at Negoesco Stadium. The Dons (1-2-0) played with an intensity from the opening kickoff that helped them notch their first win of the season.
"It was good to see us get a shutout," said second-year head coach Eddie Soto after the match. "To respond that way after what happened to us in West Virginia is really positive. It's hard to be upset or down when you win 2-0, but we didn't play our best tonight. Canisius was a very, very good opponent; they played very good soccer. Overall, we build; it's a process of how we want to play, it's going to take a little time, but we won 2-0, so I'm happy."
USF got on the board in the 15th minute when a Canisius defender tried to play it back towards the goal from the right touchline but the ball bounced over his teammate and Sean Bowman was there to head a shot high into the air from about 10 yards out that looped into the far left corner just out of reach of the leaping Canisius keeper Andrew Coughlin for Bowman's first-career goal.
From that point both sides locked horns in a back-and-forth contest that came down to a few timely, well-placed shots. One of which was David Garrett's first goal of the year in the 40th minute, when he took a through ball from Vincent Pedace in the box and found himself looking at a one-on-one with Coughlin where Garrett punched it past the keeper for the score, putting the Dons up by their final 2-0 margin.
The Dons had a handful of other near-goals as Garrett almost scored his second goal late in the second half, but his shot was swatted away, while Kevin De La Torre, who appeared in his first match in a USF uniform, just about found the back of the net in the first half when he ripped off a low rocket that was corralled in front of the goal.
Canisius (1-2-0) wasn't without their own chances on the night. USF freshman keeper Andre Glasnovic, making his first-career start in goal, stonewalled a number of Canisius opportunities. Late in the first half, the Golden Griffins reeled off a flurry of three consecutive corner kicks, the last of which had Glasnovic rise above the crowded box to snag the ball in traffic and shut down the chance.
Glasnovic was at it again late in the second half when Canisius' Nicolo Baudo slipped open during a scrum in front of the goal and had a point blank look that Glasnovic was able to deflect out of harm's way to preserve the shutout.
Glasnovic (1-0-0) picked up his first shutout in goal and tallied four saves on the night, while Coughlin (1-2-0) was saddled with the loss, making six saves.
Both teams were nearly identical in shot totals in the match, with USF holding a slight 14-13 edge, while Canisius had a 6-4 advantage in corner kicks.
The Dons return to action on Sunday when they host La Salle for a 2 p.m. nonconference matchup at Negoesco Stadium.
