By James Schleicher, Publisher
AUSTIN, Texas — On a scorching hot Sunday afternoon at Mike A. Myers stadium, the Texas soccer team controlled possession for much of the match as the Longhorns used a tidal wave of three first-half goals beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 3-0.
In their first contest on their home pitch since Aug. 22, the Longhorns improved to 3-2-0 on the season and won their second match in a row.
Just 46 seconds into the game Texas[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)] got on the board as sophomore Kailey Smith scored her first career goal with a waist-high volley, which deflected off Texas A&M-Corpus Christi goalkeeper Kyleigh Hall and into the goal.
“I could not have done it without my teammates,” Smith said. “When Emma [Regan] threw in the ball to Mac [Mackenzie McFarland] and I saw myself wide on the back post, I yelled for it. When Emma [Jett] made the pass and volleyed it and it hit the post. I got a little nervous for a sec, but then it hit the back of the keeper and went in. I was so excited.”
McFarland, a sophomore forward, picked up her second assist of 2019 on Smith’s goal; Jett, a senior defender, tallied her first helper of the season on the play.
Junior midfielder/forward Haley Berg noted the team had hoped to score early in the contest.
“We wanted a goal in the first 10 minutes, and Kailey scored in the first 45 seconds,” Berg said, “so were really working on that and our transition game.”
Head coach Angela Kelly said she was pleased with her team’s progress on the field, especially when it came to the work of her front three: sophomore forward Julia Grosso, Berg and senior forward Cyera Hintzen.
According to Berg, the team stayed focused on what Kelly had in mind throughout the match.
“Tonight it was all about defensive pressure and switching the point of attack from one side of the field to the other, because that side’s always open for us,” Berg said.
The second goal for Texas came when Grosso slipped past two A&M-Corpus Christi defenders with the ball and then teed up a roller across the penalty box for Berg to bury in the top middle of the net.
“I saw [Berg] just get into the box and she usually does,” Grosso said. “It was a good build-up play.”
The goal showed Grosso’s skill level and highlighted the why she earned a spot on the Canadian national team. Kelly had nothing but praise for the player who earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Year honors a year ago.
“I thought Julia’s unselfish play tonight was fantastic,” Kelly said. “That ball across to Haley, that’s an international assist.”
For Berg, just making contact completed a successful combination score.
“Honestly, if I didn’t make it that it would have been really embarrassing,” Berg said, “because she really just made it wide-open for me. It was like me and an open net. I knew if I just got my foot through it and made solid contact, and just guide it into the goal and not shoot it, it’s going to go in.”
Having controlled possession for the majority of the match, the Horns finished with 19 shots, and seven corners to the Islanders’ eight shots and three corners. Texas junior goalkeeper Nicole Curry had three saves to give her squad the clean sheet — her first of the year. That clean sheet meant the most to Kelly.
“That’s where everything needs to start from,” Kelly said. “We got lots of people minutes tonight and we’re going to need a lot of depth in our conference.”
Thanks to the early lead Kelly had the opportunity to sub players en masse late in both halves, allowing nine underclassmen to get playing time.
“Teni Akindoju, our freshman Canadian,” Kelly said. “Sydney Nobles had great minutes for us, this young season. Kailey Smith — she was coming off a knee injury coming into her freshman year, (and now) she’s just a buzzer in there. If you look at our starting lineup and then our substitution patterns there we times when we had two-to-three freshmen in and four-to-five sophomores.
The Horns continue their season against Washington at home Friday night. The Huskies will come into the match with a 2-1-2 record. Having coached Washington for 26 years, Huskies head coach Lesle Gallimore has announced her retirement at the end of the season. Kelly said she’s familiar with Gallimore’s style of play.
“I know [Gallimore] very well,” Kelly said. “They’re a very good team. They play on a different style of grass. They like to keep it, but their surface isn’t like this. The west coast is always very technical, so it’s going to be a battle — great, great match for a Friday night, and Lesle Gallimore has been in the game for 30-plus years, so it’s going to be an exciting. ”
Notes
- The Longhorns have now won their last 17 non-conference home matches dating back to Sept. 4, 2016.
- Head men’s basketball coach Shaka Smart attended Sunday’s match and Kelly commented on their relationship.
“Shaka [Smart] is one of my dearest friends on the coaching staff,” Kelly said. “He’s a wonderful wonderful man — great great coach and an even better human being. I always learn something anytime we spend time together. His young daughter plays soccer, so he always tries to bring her out. He’s a wonderful. He’s just quality.”
For more on the 2019 Longhorn soccer squad enjoy our season preview article here.
Tickets for next Friday’s match are available via the Texas Box Office – here
Highlights:
If you missed tonight’s 3-0 win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, check out the @LonghornNetwork highlights and full recap below!
Read here: https://t.co/I7VYQOWeJH pic.twitter.com/xgZOsfgHB6
— Texas Soccer (@TexasSoccer) September 9, 2019
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