Cougars pleased with effort, disappointed with tie
Brittany Eads
(310) 804-7245
britteads@gmail.com
Steve Magleby
Provo, Utah (May 22, 2009) — The BYU men's soccer team faces two of its toughest opponents this week, and Wednesday night came out of the first game with a 2-2 tie over the Ventura County Fusion, although Cougar coaches and players admit a narrow miss made the contest feel more like a loss.
"It was really a nice effort from our guys," head coach Chris Watkins explained. "Usually with this type of effort you're rewarded with a win, but this league's tough and great efforts don't always win you the game."
The Cougars scored first with a goal in the seventh minute by midfielder BJ Pugmire, who launched the ball past the Ventura goalkeeper after a high-flying assist from teammate Steve Magleby.
Ventura evened the score as forward Artur Aghasyan countered with a goal in the 25th minute and the teams went into halftime deadlocked at 1-1.
Aggressive play and the close score led to tensions running high as the second half began and both sides argued heatedly with the referees, resulting in yellow cards for each team.
In the 67th minute, the Fusion went back on top as Alcaraz John punched in a short-range shot and would have padded the lead if not for a series of spectacular saves by BYU's 6-foot-6 goalkeeper Bryan Black, who kept the Cougars within one goal with a diving punch over the net in the 82nd minute.
With time running short, BYU put another ball in the net on a dazzling header goal by defender KC Whitworth following an assist by Rich Harrison and the game went into suspended time, giving both teams an additional four minutes to try and seal the deal.
The Cougars came close to winning the overtime battle when Pugmire gained possession of the ball and fired a short-range shot, but his kick went a fraction wide of the net and the game ended 2-2.
"It was absolutely a high-level game," Watkins stated. "We are coming through as a group this season, putting more pressure on the ball and keeping a positive attitude. We've got to improve a bit for Saturday, continuing to play sharp and ambitious."
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The Cougars face the Hollywood United Hitmen Saturday night at 7:30 in another contest featuring some of the West Coast's top soccer talent. General public tickets are available online at www.byutickets.com for $6 and $5 for students.
