The UCA men’s soccer team escaped the talons of the North Florida Ospreys with a fast-paced 3-0 clean sheet in its final home game of the season.
“It showed a lot of grit, a lot of determination and a lot of resilience,” coach Frank Kohlenstein said. “Some players who hadn’t done as well throughout the year are starting to come on because of the things they’ve learned from all of our experiences.”
Unlike the 2022 season, the Bears (3-8-4, 2-2-3 ASUN) found themselves facing far more unexpected challenges.
Not only were the Bears fighting heavy rainfall throughout the game, but the final score would determine whether the team would make it into the playoffs.
“They knew that we needed to have a win in order to play on into the conference tournament,” Kohlenstein said.
A standout player of the game was forward midfielder junior Devonte Richards, who scored two of the Bears’ goals as well as assisting with the third.
Midfielder graduate student Jerry Gutierrez said, “I think we were able to create more chances, we were more direct in a sense. They [North Florida] wanted to build up more and cross the ball where we just wanted to put balls behind their back line.”
The final home game also marked Gutierrez’s last time playing in the Bill Stephens Track and Soccer Complex.
“[It’s] kind of sad, but it’s a good way to end it. Looking forward to what we have next,” Gutierrez said.
Although the Ospreys (3-8-4, 0-6-1 ASUN) took 15 shots in total, two more than the Bears, their higher shot count wasn’t enough to overcome the Bears’ vigorous defense.
Kohlenstein said, “North Florida did end up putting pressure on us, but we always had someone there — whether it was one of our defenders or our goalkeeper.”
The Ospreys’ passing skills proved to be a problem for the Bears throughout the game, easily weaving and bobbing through the offensive line.
The Bears were able to adapt to North Florida’s passing game with an increasingly aggressive playing style, racking up 21 fouls but finding it much easier to gain control of the ball.
“We’ve played a lot of the best teams in the country and we keep learning lessons from all of those matches. This was an example of us doing that,” Kohlenstein said.
Although UCA led the entire game, the Bears capped off their regular season with Richards’ second goal of the night in the remaining two minutes and 21 seconds.
Gutierrez said, “It’s a good way to end your season. Everyone put in a great performance with everyone working out, especially in this rain, we knew it was gonna be a chippy battle. It’s just a matter of winning first and second balls and putting away our chances.”
The Bears will fight for the crown against Queens University of Charlotte in the first game of the Sunbelt Championship at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4, in Charlotte, North Carolina.