Dog pound on lockdown

The men's soccer team put on an efficient offensive display out of the gates in Tuesday night's matchup with Big East rival Providence at Morrone Stadium. The Huskies (6-2-2, 5-1-0 Big East) found the net three times in a 14-minute span early in the first half and cruised from there, dispatching the Friars 4-0 to record their fourth straight shutout victory over an in-conference foe.

As was the case in Saturday night's 1-0 win over Georgetown, freshman forwards Stephane DIOP and Carlos Alvarez combined with sophomore midfielder Tony Cascio for the game-winning tally. This time it was Alvarez who found the net - the first time he's done so in his collegiate career - on a strike that curled out of the reach of Friars keeper Timothy Murray in the sixth minute. DIOP made a long run from just inside the midline before serving the ball ahead to Cascio who was waiting in the box. Cascio backed down Murray and wheeled around to feed Alvarez when he couldn't free himself for the shot.

Junior striker Alan Ponce took an Alvarez cross from the far side of the field and chipped it home to put the Huskies on top 2-0 in the 18th minute. Cascio blasted a drive into the upper-left corner of the net just minutes later at the 20:58 mark for his team-leading fourth goal of the year. He added another in the second half on a similar shot to notch his fifth goal in as many games.

Coach Ray Reid stocked the backfield with as many as five defenders after his team raced out to the crooked margin early. While the result was the Big East-leading seventh shutout of the year for junior goalie Josh Ford, the veteran was hardly tested, having to make just three saves. The story, as Reid acknowledged, was UConn's offensive fireworks - led by the streaking Cascio.

"I thought the guys did a good job tonight," Reid said. "The whole team did a good job, but the front of the team, Ponce, Cascio, Alvarez and DIOP were very good in the open field and were dangerous."

The Gilbert, Ariz.-born Cascio finished with a pair of assists along with the goals to rack up six points, upping his team-leading total to 14 - putting in a tie for tops in the conference. Alvarez assisted on Cascio's second score to finish with four points.

After the game, Cascio was complimentary of his teammates and the way they put together shots that he was able to finish.

"It's not just me, it's a whole team effort," Cascio said. "Carlos and DIOP, they're both playing good, and all four of us up top have some good chemistry. As the days go by, we're just getting better team chemistry, we're working better together. It's just like anything, it takes time."

With the loss, Providence fell to 2-3-1 in the Big East and 5-4-1 overall. The Huskies head to Morgantown on Friday to take on West Virginia with first place in the Blue Division on the line.