Owls shutout again in loss to Tigers

Temple Men’s Soccer (2-7-2, 0-5 American Athletic Conference) fell to the University of Memphis (6-2-3, 3-1-1 AAC) 1-0 at the Temple Sports Complex on Sunday night. The Owls have yet to record a win in conference play and failed to find the back of the net for a second time in a row after losing to Florida International University 3-0 on Wednesday night.

KEY PLAYS

• In the 33rd minute, Tigers’ senior midfielder Jovan Prado could not connect with a header, hitting it off the crossbar. 
• In the 36th minute, Tigers’ sophomore forward Lineker Rodrigues Dos Santos bent a left-footed goal to the right of Temple goalkeeper Eoin Gawronski to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. Junior forward Gabriel Christensen assisted the goal. 
• In the 54th minute, Gawronski made a jumping save to block a potential goal from Cesar Sancho, who took a shot from outside the box. 
• In the 62nd minute, the referee issued Tigers’ junior midfielder Toby McCallum a yellow card because of an unsportsmanlike play. Owls’ freshman midfielder Lleyton Imparato could not capitalize on the free kick, as the Tigers’ back line blocked it.
• In the 68th minute, Tigers’ sophomore goalkeeper Colin Welsh made a kick save inside the box shot from Owls’ freshman midfielder Lleyton Imparato to keep the shutout for the Tigers. 
• In the 75th minute, Owls’ senior midfielder Ferran Vera Filella recorded a red card for an aggressive foul, the team’s fifth of the season. 
• In the 89th minute, Welsh made a leaping save to maintain the lead and contribute to the Tigers’ 1-0 win.

THE NUMBERS

• Rodrigues Dos Santos scored a goal on two shots in the match.
• Memphis recorded ten shots and five shots on goal. Temple recorded 11 shots with only three coming on goal.
• Gawronski finished with four saves in the match, while Welsh recorded only three saves in the contest. 

WORDS FROM THE COACH

“I thought that the guys came out and showed determination, fight, competitiveness and quality,” said head coach Brian Rowland. 

“We know the importance of games at this point in the season,” Rowland said. “We gotta get points on the board.”

ON TAP

The Owls will look for their first conference win on the road against Florida Atlantic University (3-5-2, 2-1-1 AAC) on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. in Boca Raton, Florida.