Texas A&M
USC
No. 7 A&M Powers Past No. 8 USC
Aug 22, 2009 | Soccer
Aug. 22, 2009
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COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 7 Texas A&M soccer team kicked off the 2009 season in style with a 3-0 shutout of No. 8 USC on Saturday night in front of a crowd of 2,713 at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
The last time the Trojans (0-1-0) were in College Station in 2007, they were lifting a national championship trophy, but in this first-ever meeting between the two teams, the Aggies (1-0-0) used their speed and offensive pressure to wear down the Women of Troy.
"Top to bottom this is the most athletic team we've ever had and we've had some fast teams in the past," said A&M head coach G Guerrieri. "The pressure we were able to put on USC paid off. They are very technical and skilled, and they are a very good team. We wanted to put them on their heels and we did a good job of being dangerous. For us to be able to handle a great team like USC is good for our confidence and this was a good start to the season."
What started as a back-and-forth battle quickly turned in the Aggies favor as they poured on the offensive pressure in the last 20 minutes of the first half, firing off 10 of their 12 shots.
With 22 second remaining, junior Mary Grace Schmidt headed in the game-winning goal inside the far post on a serve from sophomore Becca Herrera.
"Becca is really phenomenal at putting the ball in the right place," said Guerrieri. "Mary Grace had a free header and she buried it."
The Aggies kept the ball in their attacking third much of the second half and a turnover by the USC defense in the 72nd minute was quickly picked up by a pursuing Nora Skelton. The freshman and Austin, Texas, native pushed the ball up to junior Whitney Hooper who beat USC goalkeeper Kristin Olsen 1v1 to put the Aggies up 2-0.
"Whitney is an `oh my' type of player, just because of the way she covers ground and the way she can change directions," Guerrieri said. "She was really fun to watch tonight and I think she's only starting to scratch the surface of the things that she can do."
Senior Amber Gnatzig put the game out of reach with just over three minutes remaining in the match. Sophomore Alyssa Mautz sent the ball forward, past Olsen 30 yards out, and Gnatzig raced it down and buried it into an open goal.
The Aggies outshot USC, 25-10 and had a commanding 14 shots on goal compared to two from the Trojans. The A&M defense nearly shut down USC in the second half holding the team to just four shots, none of which were on frame. Junior goalkeepers Kristin Arnold and Kelly Dyer combined for their first shutout.
Texas A&M soccer returns to action at the Aggie Soccer Stadium on Friday, Aug. 28 to take on Purdue at 8 p.m.
