On Wednesday, six Mustangs found the back of the net while Michael Nelson pitched a save-less shut-out to give No.21 SMU a 7-0 win over Central Arkansas at Westcott Field.
The last time SMU scored seven goals or more was in an 8-0 defeat of Centenary on Sept. 12, 2006.
“You’re always worried at any level because any team can beat you, but every night you have to put your best foot forward and make sure you’re doing the things that you prepare for and we did,” Head Coach Tim McClements said. “We got goals often and had a number of quality chances and finished several so it was a nice night for our fellows.”
SMU improves to 8-3-1 on the season after Wednesday’s match while UCA falls to 2-9-0.
Will Smith led the scoring for the Mustangs with the two goals he scored in the final three minutes of play. Smith’s first tally was a bicycle kick inside of six yards while the second came off a cross from senior Andrew Morales. Both goals were the first of Smith’s career.
Mauro Cichero got the Mustangs started in the 13th minute with a attack began in just the 13th minute when the freshman managed to evade several defenders and place the ball into the lower right corner of the goal for his second goal of the season.
By the end of the first half, SMU held a 4-0 lead over UCA. A penalty kick from junior John Lujano in the 17th minute and goals from junior Idrissa Camara and Morales all but ended the match.
In the 60th minute, Damian Rosales extend his goal-scoring streak to three matches with SMU’s fifth goal of the game.
Having such a big lead early in the match allowed McClements to give some of his starters rests and to provide others with opportunities to play in extended minutes.
“They played very well and it was a great opportunity for some of our players who haven’t gotten a great amount of time throughout the year to come in and we were really happy and pleased with the way they played,” McClements said “It adds depth to your team as you head into conference play. Knowing that you have people who came come in off the bench and do the job is key.”
In total, the Mustang attack registered 23 shots, and 11 shots on goal.
SMU’s unbeaten has now grown to eight matches and are 7-1 at home.
“We spoke to the guys before the game to make sure they knew the importance of the result,” McClements said. “Obviously we’ve got some very difficult games coming up and we didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves so we focused tonight on Central Arkansas and now we’ll turn the page and deal with South Florida.”
SMU returns to Westcott Field for an American Athletic Conference battle with No. 24 USF on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT. USF sits just behind SMU in American action. Live stats and video will be available at SMUMustangs.com and admission is free.
