Sept. 7, 2003

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Four different players tallied goals for Alabama-Birmingham, and UMass was held scoreless for the second time this year, as the Blazers claimed the title of the UAB Nike Classic with a 4-0 victory. The loss drops UMass to 1-2-0, while the No. 13-ranked Blazers improved to 2-0-2.

UAB wasted little time in getting on the board. In the seventh minute, Jose Rayo headed in a Mikey Spitzer corner kick into the right side of the net for a 1-0 advantage. The Blazers made it 2-0 as Jarson Monteiro headed in a Marin Pusek cross into the top left corner at the 39:11 mark. The score remained 2-0 until the 61st minute when Rogerio Oliveira fired an 18-yard shot into the lower right corner with an assist from Monteiro. The Blazers ended the scoring when Pusek rocketed a direct kick over a UMass wall into the left side for a 4-0 advantage at the 83:57 mark.

The Blazers outshot the Minutemen, 18-16, and drew 11 corners to UMass' three. The two teams combined for 44 fouls. Colin Burns (Newark, Del.) played the first half in goal for the Minutemen, making three saves, while Nick Billman (St. Louis, Mo.) played the second half, making one save. Alberto Robles and Jeremy Drake combined to make four saves for UAB.

The Minutemen host the UMass adidas Classic next weekend at Rudd Field. UMass will play Mercer at 4:00 p.m. on Sept 12 and Navy at 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 14. Hartford will play Navy on Sept. 12 at 1:30 p.m. and Mercer challenges Hartford at 11:00 a.m. on Sept. 14.