FINAL SCORE: Vermont 1, UC Irvine 1
IRVINE, Calif. – Lou Liedtka's save on a penalty kick in the 89th minute secured a 1-1 tie for Vermont (0-1-1) against UC Irvine (0-1-1) on Thursday night at Anteater Stadium.
 
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Box Score

COACH'S QUOTE
"We played another excellent opponent who was very well coached," head coach Rob Dow said. "Progress was made from Game 1 to Game 2. To win on the road against top opponents, we must be more relentless in our attack."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Liedtka (7 saves) was tested early with a shot from Francesco Montanile that was directed toward the lower right corner in the fourth minute. The UVM goalkeeper denied a long range shot from Samuel Atiye minutes later.
• Nick Lockermann's inswinger in the 11th minute bounced around the UCI box, ending with a Niels Hartman shot that was blocked.  
• Max Murray nearly scored his first goal of the season in the 24th minute when Nathan Simeon's cross found the 6-5 forward sprinting towards the front of the goal. Murray's kick while in stride missed over the top bar as the game remained scoreless.
• UC Irvine held the edge in shots (3-2) over the remainder of the opening half. Agaton Pourshahid's shot in the 26th minute forced Liedtka to make his third and final save of the frame.
• Yaniv Bazini broke the scoreless tie in the 64th minute when he capitalized on a failed clearance by a UCI defender and quickly found the back of the net. The goal was his second in as many games as Vermont took a 1-0 lead in the second frame.
• Bazini came close to doubling the lead minutes later when he dribbled through traffic and fired a shot toward the upper right corner but was denied by Alex Shields (4 saves).
• Marcus Lee notched the equalizer for UC Irvine in the 80th minute when he collected a rebound in the 18-yard box, took a touch and fired a shot into the upper left corner. Isaac Powell was credited with an assist on the goal that made the score 1-1.
• Marcell Papp had a scoring chance in the 85hth minute from about 18 yards out that was heading just under the bar but turned away by Shields.
• The game closed with a chaotic final few minutes, beginning with a red card served to UCI's Nolan DiCenzo in the 88th minute. Less than a minute later, a Vermont foul in its own 18-yard box led to the penalty kick that was denied by Liedtka.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont finished the night with the 17-15 edge in shots, with seven directed on goal. The Catamounts tallied 11 of their shots in the second half.
• UVM tallied 11 corners to UCI's eight opportunities.
• Bazini recorded a game-high five shots in 78 minutes of action. He directed three shots on goal, also a game high.
• David Ismail, Jeremy Tsang, and Ryan Zellefrow each had two shots.

UP NEXT
Vermont concludes its West Coast trip Monday (Sept. 2) at San Diego State. Kickoff is set for 10 p.m. ET at SDSU Sports Deck. The matchup between the Catamounts and Aztecs will broadcast live on WAC International.
 
For news and updates about the Vermont men's soccer program, follow @UVMmsoccer on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and visit UVMathletics.com.

New England Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont soccer