Nov. 18, 2005 (Dallas) - USF men's soccer fell 2-1 to Southern Methodist Friday night in the opening round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament at Westcott Field. Making their second consecutive men's soccer NCAA appearance after securing their second straight West Coast Conference Championship, the Dons (11-6-4) could not deny the Mustangs (11-5-3) making their 21st postseason showing in 22 years. San Francisco seized the offensive initiative early and recorded four of its six shots in the first 15 minutes of the first half. The pendulum swung to SMU as freshman Paulo da Silva scored his first goal of the night at 17:30 and added another at 32:47 for his fifth tally of the season. The Mustangs took a 2-0 lead into the intermission and held a 7-6 shot advantage. USF broke up the shutout bid at the last possible moment, capitalizing on a jailbreak in the box as freshman forward Ben Dessard found junior midfielder Matt Languis surging forward to the open net at the 89:58 mark. It was the first shot credited to the Dons in the second half, although SMU managed just a pair in the final 45 minutes of play. "I am proud of the way the team played," USF head coach Erik Visser said. "We pressed the attack early and had several legitimate scoring chances, but we were unable to capitalize on them. We gave up a soft goal and the momentum changed. SMU was a very tough opponent. The second half was an uphill battle, but I thought overall we played well." USF's loss in the opening round of the NCAA's snapped a six-game unbeaten streak for the Dons who shocked Santa Clara for its second consecutive league title with a dominating 2-0 victory at Gonzaga in the regular season finale. "This team had some major accomplishments this season," Visser said. "Repeating back-to-back in one of the toughest conferences in the country is something no on can take away from us. I am disappointed by the result tonight, but the coaching staff and the team are determined to take this program to the next level."
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