By Steve Lansdale
The University of Texas women’s soccer team pushed its way north of the .500 line with a 2-1 victory over Abilene Christian in a game that was more lopsided than the final score.
The Longhorns got two goals in two minutes — senior Lindsey Meyer scored in the 70th minute when she headed in a long free kick by Julia Dyche, followed by the first goal of freshman Mikayla Flores’ career, off an assist by Kelsey Shimmick — to take a 2-0 lead. They surrendered a goal to Abilene Christian’s Sophie Standifer in the 78th minute, but were able to hold on to their lead to pick up the victory.
On the scoreboard, UT emerged from the game with [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]a narrow victory. But the Longhorns outshot ACU, 26-9 (including a 14-6 margin in shots on goal), and enjoyed a 12-1 advantage in corner kicks, a statistic that often indicates which team has the edge in possession and offensive chances.
“I think we had 26 shots, 14 of those on the face,” Texas head coach Angela Kelly said. “Credit to the goalkeeper (Sydney Newton) that started the game for Abilene Christian, she had tremendous saves. She made it really difficult for us to find the back of the net. These are the types of games where you just have to will the ball into the back of the net and continue to stay consistent and persistent. I thought we did a good job of that. Certainly the two goals in the second half were great and Mikayla Flores from Kelsey Shimmick… that was a fantastic goal.”
Texas had several chances to take the lead before Meyer scored, but shots that got deflected over the end line and the four ACU fouls allowed the Longhorns a chance to work on their corner kicks and set pieces, which Kelly said has been an area of focus for her team.
“We have targets, and we have set pieces that are really the difference,” Kelly said, “and in high-level games, set pieces and free kicks are where you can separate yourself. We spend a good amount of time talking about scenarios and setting up our set pieces, and obviously Lindsey’s great in the air. I’m just really happy for them.”
Meyer echoed her coach, saying her tally was a result of the time the ’Horns have spent on set pieces in practice
“Julia (Dyche) just played a great ball,” Meyer said, “and I ran to the right spot and just got it on frame — just like Coach Kelly always tells us.”
Meyer said that while the final score did not suggest a mismatch, she thought the Longhorns’ ability to dominate possession allowed them to generate most of the offensive chances.
“I think we kept the ball really well,” Meyer said. “Our forwards did a good job of holding the ball. Everyone played good balls in behind so that let them be able to get in line. That’s how we got a bunch of corners and how we got shots like that.”
Flores scored what proved to be the eventual game-winning goal less than two minutes after Meyer’s goal, when she one-timed a volley off a long crossing pass from Shimmick.
“It felt pretty good — amazing,” Flores said of her first collegiate goal, “so I’m excited about that. Kelsey (Shimmick) played a great ball right to my feet, and I just hit it in.”
Standifer’s goal cut the deficit in half, but that was the last chance for ACU, which failed to register a single shot over the rest of the game.
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