April 11, 2010
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Texas A&M soccer team wrapped up its spring exhibition season with convincing victories over two in-state opponents from the Conference USA. The Aggies defeated the University of Houston, 4-0, and then turned around and defeated SMU, 4-1, to finish their non-traditional season with a 10-1-1 record.
In the first game of the day, A&M got on the scoreboard in the 18th minute, when sophomore forward Christina Navalta 30 yards outside the UH goal. Navalta spun with the ball and found senior midfielder Amber Gnatzig on an overlapping run at the 18 yard line, where Gnatzig one-timed a hard, low shot off of the far post and into the back of the net.
Ten minutes later, sophomore midfielder Raven Tatum split the Cougar defense with a penetrating pass to Navalta. The Carrollton, Texas, native quickly slid a one-touch pass to Armstrong, who struck the ball past the Houston goalkeeper.
The Aggies led the 70-minute exhibition match 2-0 at halftime, but added a third goal just two minutes into the second half. Freshman Catalina Clavijo dribbled by two UH defenders and slipped a pass to Armstrong, who scored with the outside of her right foot into the far corner of the goal.
Finally, in the 65th minute, sophomore Carly Wohlers 20 yards from goal. Wohlers then dropped a gentle pass back to sophomore Megan Majewski, who blasted a shot from 30 yards over the keeper and under crossbar to make the final score 4-0.
Following the win over Houston, the Aggies had about an hour to change their uniforms and get themselves ready for a full 90-minute match against SMU.
In their second game of the day, the A&M opened the scoring in the eighth minute when junior Rachel Shipley hit a pass across the SMU defense to Navalta who found Amber Gnatzig. From Humble, Texas, Gnatzig settled the ball and pushed it past the Mustang keeper for a 1-0 A&M lead.
A&M got on the scoreboard again in the 22nd minute when sophomore Bri Young dribbled at the SMU defense and played a give-and-go to Shipley just outside the penalty area. Shipley then slid a touch pass between two SMU defenders to a running Navalta. Navalta blasted a one-touch shot past the Mustang keeper, making the score 2-0.
Then, three minutes later, freshman defender Lyndsey Gnatzig played a 25-yard ball to Hamilton who spun around an SMU defender, then played a diagonal, cross-field pass to Wohlers who used her first touch to control the ball, then curled a shot into far corner of the net with her second touch. A&M led the match 3-0 at the half.
The Mustangs tallied a score in the 60th minute on a counter-attack following an A&M free kick, but, the Aggies reestablished their three-goal advantage in the 75th minute. Young lobbed a ball over the SMU backline, where Hamilton ran onto the pass and chipped the ball 35 yards over the SMU goalkeeper and into the back of the net for the final 4-1 score.
"These two games wrapped up a nice spring season for us," said A&M head coach G Guerrieri. "There were a few examples of really brilliant play by several players.
"We took on a difficult and demanding spring schedule, and with a number of little injuries to about 11 of our players, it ended up being quite a physical test for the remaining healthy players. In this portion of our soccer calendar, we're looking to find those kinds of challenges which provide our players with valuable game experiences."
Stay logged on to AggieAthletics.com for the release of the 2010 Texas A&M soccer schedule soon.