No. 8 Tampa Suffers First Loss at Hands of Saint Leo

ST. LEO, Fla. - The No. 8 University of Tampa (4-1-1, 1-1 SSC) men's soccer team dropped its first match of the 2012 season as Saint Leo University (4-1, 2-1 SSC) played to a 3-0 Sunshine State Conference shutout of the Spartans.

When asked to comment on the game, UT head coach Adrian Bush stated "I stand by my team and we have two days to prepare, and will be ready to play Barry."

The Lions broke a scoreless game with a goal in the 42nd minute, and responded with scores in both the 58th and 89th minutes. Javeim Blanchette was credited with the game-winner as his first goal of the year came just before the half.

Tampa played the Lions closer than the final score may indicate, as UT held a 13-11 edge in shots. The Lions had six on goal, compared to five for Tampa as the Spartans had six corner kicks to SLU's three.

Dominic Goncalves tallied three shots to lead Tampa, as Joshua Freese registered two shots on goal on both attempts.

David Niepel finished the evening with two saves as the Spartan goalkeeper played the entire contest.

Tampa will return home to Pepin Stadium as it will play host to Barry University on Saturday at 7:30 p.m., in a non-conference affair between the two SSC institutions. Live stats and a webcast will be available through TampaSpartans.tv.

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