Oct. 26, 2008

Final Stats

(San Francisco) - USF scored three unanswered goals to seize a 3-1 West Coast Conference victory against ancient Bay Area rival Santa Clara Sunday on a foggy night at Negoesco Stadium. The Dons (5-7-2, 4-2-1 WCC) collect their first win against the Broncos (3-7-5, 1-3-3 WCC) since a 1-0 decision on the Hilltop October 30, 2004.

Chris Sauter got Santa Clara on the board first in the eighth minute scoring on a melee in the box punching in a deflection from eight yards with the field shrouded in heavy fog. The Broncos enjoyed better opportunities in the first half, but San Francisco held a 6-3 shot advantage going into the intermission.

USF got the equalizer in the 65th minute on junior midfielder Jonathan Levy's first goal in the Green and Gold. Levy rifled a rebound into the back of the net to knot the contest at 1-1.

San Francisco wasted little time, scoring the go-ahead goal in the 71st minute on a beautiful sequence. Junior Bryan Burke sent in a cross to junior forward Conor Chinn who headed the ball to the feet of junior midfielder Leon Williams, who was waiting at the far post and then fired a shot to the near post from six yards. It was the second scoring strike of the season for Williams, both of them game-winners.

Chinn would connect in the 82nd minute taking a feed from Levy knocking it in from the far post for the final margin. USF held a 14-9 shot advantage for the contest. Levi recorded a match-high five shots, Chinn added four and Williams fired three. Jeff Cosgriff tallied four shots for the Broncos off the bench.

"To come back after 48 hours after a hard-fought scoreless tie at Santa Clara and then take a well-deserved victory against a very good Santa Clara team - I am very proud of my guys," USF head coach Erik Visser said. "We came from behind. They took it to us for the first 15 minutes and it would have been easy for us to crack, but we bounced back hard and strong and after the first 20 minutes really controlled the game."

Senior goalkeeper Jeremy Coupe collected his fifth victory of the season and recorded four saves on the night. Kevin Klasila suffered the loss for the Broncos and made three saves.

USF continues its three-match league homestand when it hosts Portland Friday, October 31 at Negoesco Stadium. Game time against the Pilots is set for 7:00 PM on Halloween.