SOCCER: Oct. 4 Scoreboard
Stephen F. Austin 2, McNeese State 1 (OT)
A&M-Corpus Christi 2, Southeastern Louisiana 1
Abilene Christian 1, Central Arkansas 0
Sam Houston State 1, Lamar 0
Houston Baptist 3, Nicholls 1
Northwestern State 0, UIW 0 (2OT)
Stephen F. Austin 2, McNeese State 1 (OT)
LAKE CHARLES, La. – Sophomore forward Hanna Barker played the role of hero for the Stephen F. Austin women’s soccer team on Sunday afternoon at Cowgirl Field, providing a golden goal just 5:12 into overtime to lift the Ladyjacks to a thrilling 2-1 victory over McNeese.
The first place Ladyjacks improve to 5-6-1 overall and 4-0-1 in the Southland Conference with the victory.
Barker’s first goal of the 2015 season was one of the biggest of her young collegiate career. With the game level at 1-1 in the first overtime period, she received a pass from sophomore midfielder Madison Hall down the left center of the box and ripped a shot that dinged off the right post and rippled the side netting. The game-ending goal gave SFA the 2-1 win – its fourth straight victory in SLC play.
Hall was credited with the assist after the clean distribution from the top of the 18. It represents her first career assist as a Ladyjack.
Though SFA controlled much of the game, the Cowgirls were the ones who struck first. Michelle Petrarca scored off a corner kick in the 74th minute to put McNeese up 1-0.
Not backing down after conceding the header, the Ladyjacks found an equalizer via a penalty kick just over five minutes later. Hall cranked out a shot that found the hand of a McNeese player in the box in the 80th minute, and senior captain Rachel Owens stepped up and drilled the shot home to make it a 1-1 game.
After scoring the game-winner against Lamar on Friday night, Owens has scored in back-to-back contests and three times overall this season.
Barker handled the rest for her team in extra time.
SFA outshot McNeese 23-8 on the afternoon with a 7-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Ladyjacks also created more opportunities off corners with an 8-3 cushion.
The SFA defensive unit was solid once again, not yielding a single shot attempt in the first half. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Lillie Ehlert (5-5-1) recorded two saves and was credited with the winning decision.
The Ladyjacks have now beaten the Cowgirls in 10 consecutive games over the past nine years and extend their unbeaten streak in conference to 27 straight matches dating back to the 2013 season.
SFA will play just one game next week, heading to Conway, Arkansas for a Friday night showdown with Central Arkansas. The game is set to start at 7 p.m.
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A&M-Corpus Christi 2, Southeastern Louisiana 1
Corpus Christi, Texas – After falling behind 1-0 in the second half to Southeastern Louisiana on a penalty kick, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's soccer team (1-8-2, 1-3-1) responded with goals from Hailey Sutton and Tatum Printy to lift the Islanders to their first win of the season on Sunday at the Dugan Soccer Stadium.
After a scoreless first half, the Lady Lions were awarded a penalty kick for a foul in the box six minutes into the second half. Southeastern Louisiana leading scorer Gisenia Utreras converted the spot kick just inside the right post.
The Islanders responded five minutes later with a goal to level the match. Sutton collected a loose ball in the attacking half and dribbled past two Lady Lions defenders. The junior took a shot from the top of the box that curled around the hopeless dive of Southeastern Louisiana keeper Hope Sabadash.
In the 75th minute, Brooke Erdmann made an attacking run from her left-back position. The Deer Park, Texas, native beat two defenders and took a shot from distance that forced Sabadash deflected the ball over the bar for a corner.
Cordero placed her ensuing corner kick in the six-yard box, where Tatum Printy produced an unstoppable header to score her first career goal and give the Islanders a 2-1 advantage.
In an attempt to avoid their second consecutive defeat, Southeastern Louisiana sent players forward in the dying minutes of the match to score an equalizer. Jacey Love and Meghan Cordero commanded the Islanders backline and eliminated any threat on goal with two blocked shots in the final ten minutes.
A&M-Corpus Christi conceded a corner with less than a minute to play in regulation. Islanders goalkeeper Megan Delaney managed to tip the initial cross out of the path of an incoming forward. The ball fell to Utreras on the back post, but Delaney made two crucial saves from close range to preserve the victory for the Islanders.
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Abilene Christian 1, Central Arkansas 0
ABILENE, Texas – The Abilene Christian defense allowed just nine shots and junior midfielder Maria Gomez punched in a 19-yard free kick for the match’s lone goal, leading the Wildcats to a 1-0 decision over Southland Conference rival Central Arkansas on a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Elmer Gray Stadium.
The victory lifted ACU’s overall and conference records to 4-7-2 and 3-1-1, while the Bears fell to 6-7 and 3-2, snapping a three-match winning streak that included a 6-1 win over Lamar.
ACU outshot UCA 10-8 in the first half, made some adjustments at the break, and then held the visitors to only one shot and a single corner kick over the final 45 minutes. The consecutive shutouts were the Wildcats first in Southland competition, and first since blanking Midwestern State and Wayland Baptist on back-to-back dates in September of 2013.
Junior goalkeeper Sydney Newton was credited with the win behind three saves, but the true heroes were her backline and midfielders who clamped down on one of the league’s more prolific offenses. The Bears came into the match averaging 13.9 shots and 1.73 goals per contest, however, they had no answers against center backs Kelsie Roberts and Chantal Kinsey and were harassed on the outside flanks by a combination of several players, including junior Alyssa Gerner, who contributed 71 minutes today after missing Friday’s match with an injury.
UCA’s best scoring chance came in the 17th minute when Katie Koch hit the crossbar. The Bears also got off a good shot – a header by Stacia Carroll that sailed high – following one of their four first-half corner kicks.
Newton made the last of her three saves in the 32nd minute.
ACU recorded the first four shots of the match and later had two blocked, while a few more sailed wide and UCA GK Lauren Mecuri saved two. The Wildcats then went 12 minutes without a shot until Gomez lineup up for her free kick with 37 seconds left before halftime.
After one of her teammates was tripped just outside the 18-yard box, Gomez lined up the ball 19 yards away from the net inside the penalty arc before firing a laser to the right of the UCA wall and between Mercuri’s glove and the near post.
The goal was Gomez’ first of the season and first since delivering an insurance strike in a 3-0 win vs. Nicholls last September.
The second half belonged to the ACU offense even though it couldn’t pad their lead any further against Mercuri, who finished the match with eight saves. The Wildcats recorded seven of their 12 second-half shots within the first 10 minutes with Mercuri stopping three of them.
Senior Lindsey Jones led all players with six shots, while Gomez had four, and two others had three.
UCA’s Alex Moore put two of her three shots on frame in 67 minutes of play.
The Wildcats return to action Friday at Houston Baptist, which won last year’s Southland Conference tournament title and represented the league at the NCAA Championships.
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Sam Houston State 1, Lamar 0
BEAUMONT, Texas – Sam Houston State soccer moved its win streak to three matches, including five of the last six, downing Lamar, 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at the LU Soccer Complex, thanks to a Maddy Panozzo goal 50 seconds into the second half.
The Bearkats (7-4-1 overall, 4-1 Southland) have taken the first two matches of their three-game road trip, which concludes Friday against Northwestern State at 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, the winner was Panozzo’s first goal of her Bearkat career. The junior forward has logged two assists on the season and has played in all 12 matches. Senior Mariah Titus, who took the free kick on Panozzo’s goal, registered her second assist of the season on the play.
The Kats logged a season-high 31 shots and recorded double-digit shots on goal (11) for the third time this season and second time in as many matches. Allie Johnson led the way with nine shots and four on goal while Titus took seven, including one on goal.
Senior goalkeeper Kylie Hambleton improved to 4-4-1 in the net, logging seven games for her second shutout of the season. The Bearkats defense has been a force, recording four shutouts while allowing no more than one goal each of the last six matches.
The loss dropped the Cardinals to 6-8 overall and 2-3 in the league and pushed Sam Houston to an impressive 5-1 record in road matches, including three straight wins.
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Houston Baptist 3, Nicholls 1
HOUSTON, Texas – Freshman forward Sabriah Spencer scored twice and Blake Martin tallied her first goal of the season in a three-goal first half that HBU never relinquished in a 3-1 win over Nicholls Sunday afternoon in Southland Conference action.
Spencer registered her second 2-goal game of her career, as she accomplished the feat against UTEP Aug. 28. Martin earned her first three-point match of her career with a goal and an assist. All three of Spencer’s shots hit the target to lead HBU (6-3-1 overall, 4-1-0 SLC). Katie Turner stopped two shots in the complete-game win.
Spencer Valdespino led Nicholls (3-7-1, 1-4-0 SLC), who scored for the Colonels and had five of the team’s nine shots. Emily Werenskiold had three shots and a team-best two shots on goal. Amanda Boylson took the loss between the pipes as she made four saves.
It took only seven-and-a-half minutes for Spencer to score her first of the game and give HBU the lead. Earning a corner, Ellee Hall took the free kick and Spencer headed the ball in for a 1-0 Huskies’ lead.
Spencer notched her second of the game in the 28th minute, assisted by Martin and Autumn Wildung. Wildung sent a pass to Martin, who sent a centering pass into the box that Spencer headed past Boylson for a 2-0 HBU advantage.
Martin wasn’t done as she gave the hosts a 3-0 lead 12 minutes later, as she headed a corner kick taken by Alessia Dal Monte.
HBU outshot the Colonels, 6-2, in the opening half and had all four of the half’s corner kicks.
Nicholls’ leader in points and goals in Valdespino, gave the Colonels life with an individual effort nine minutes into the second half. The Colonels nearly had a second goal in the 84th minute, but Werenskiold’s shot hit the post.
Nicholls outshot HBU, 7-6, in the second half, but HBU held a 12-9 advantage for the match. Each team had two corner kicks as the Huskies had a 6-2 lead for the match.
HBU hosts Abilene Christian next Friday, Oct. 9 at 5 pm.
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Northwestern State 0, UIW 0 (2OT)
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – UIW and Northwestern State played to a 0-0 draw on Sunday morning in Southland Conference women's soccer action at Benson Stadium.
The Cardinals (3-9-1, 1-3-1) found themselves pressured right off the kickoff. The Lady Demons (3-6-3, 0-3-2) started by testing the defense and freshman goal keeper Sydney Huntingser by peppering them with shots, ten alone in the first half. UIW picked up the pace as time went on and gained more possession.
The standoff continued to the second half. However, the Cardinals took control of the game in the form of connecting passes, but they could not finish several opportunities. One of the best chances to score for UIW came in the 68th minute when Nikki Popa dribbled the ball to the corner of the 18-yard box and dropped it to the penalty spot for Emani Stewart who headed it towards the bottom left corner of the goal, but it was caught by the NSU keeper Alex Latham.
Entering overtime for the third time this season, the Cardinals defense tried to build together and get some chances for the offense with no results. Huntingser was very solid in the goal facing 22 shots and making 11 saves. Defender Addie Bachle has another great game by coming to the rescue in several situations that could have resulted in a goal.
The Cardinals will travel to Corpus Christi for their only game of the week against the Islanders. The game will be played on Friday at 7 p.m.
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