UMBC and No. 11 seed Providence are the only teams left in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division I tournament that have yet to surrender a goal in regulation and overtime in the postseason.
On the flipside, the Retrievers (14-5-4) – who will meet No. 12 seed Creighton (16-3-2) in a quarterfinal Friday night at Morrison Stadium in Omaha, Neb. – have the least productive offense in the playoffs, scoring just twice.
The offense's sudden lack of punch might be a cause for concern for fans, but senior midfielder Mamadou Kansaye said he is confident.
"It doesn't worry me at all," said the McDonogh graduate, who scored his fifth goal of the season in Sunday's 1-0 upset of No. 13 seed Louisville in the second round. "We're doing what we need to do in order to win the game. People call us underdogs and underestimate us at their own peril. That's their problem, not ours.
"We focus on what we need to focus on, and we control what we can control. In terms of the weather, the turf, the referees, none of that counts for us. UMBC is what counts for us. The way we train, what we do, and what we can control is what we can control. So fewest goals? Doesn't worry me."
Kansaye's calm is mostly mirrored by his coach, Pete Caringi Jr.
"It does concern me, but I think when you're at this level and this stage of it, you survive and advance," he said. "When we play here [at Retriever Soccer Park in Catonsville], we're much more offensive-oriented. We want to dictate the tempo. I think when you're on the road, you won't attack as much because basically the onus is on them to have to come out and attack.
"If they want to sit back and defend, we'll accept that a little more. When we play at home, we're always that offensive-minded team. When you're playing teams now that are nationally ranked and highly seeded, you're probably going to be a little more cautious than you would if you were playing at home. That's just the philosophy you have in soccer."
Senior forward Kay Banjo, the Towson transfer who leads UMBC in both goals (eight) and points (22), has gone four consecutive games without a goal – his longest drought of the season – but pointed out that he is happy to involve his teammates.
"If I have to not get the ball for somebody to get the ball, then we're going to do that," Banjo said. "It's not a one-man game, but if the other team is going to play that way, then we're going to have to counter. … I don't care if I score. As along as my team wins at the end of the game, I'm still happy. It's not about Kay scoring or Kay doing this. I haven't scored in a couple of games, and we've been winning. I impact the way I can, and it's been working."