Texas A&M
Rice
Aggies Roll to 3-0 Win Over Rice in Exhibition Match
Aug 14, 2010 | Soccer
Aug. 14, 2010
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Three different Aggies found the back of the net Friday night as the No. 8 Texas A&M soccer team rolled to a 3-0 win over Rice in an exhibition match at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
Sophomore Raven Tatum scored the only goal the Aggies would need in just the seventh minute. Junior Merritt Mathias followed suit two minutes later and senior Rachel Shipley added A&M's final blow in the 56th minute.
Junior goalkeeper Kristin Arnold made six saves to earn the shutout between the posts.
"I'm pretty excited about what I saw tonight," said head coach G Guerrieri. "There were bursts of brilliance out there, with good possession and good one-touch play. Rice competed hard and we had to score some great goals to get the 3-0 win.
"This was the first time we went in 45-minute spurts and the match was a good learning experience for us. We clearly have a different type of opponent coming in on Friday and we're going to have to continue to ratchet up in training to get ready for a good team."
The crowd of 1,398 was brought to its feet quickly with a 30-yard blast by Tatum from the middle of the field just minutes into the match. The precisely-struck goal crossed top-shelf over the outstretched arm of the Rice goalkeeper, Meghan Erkel.
A couple minutes later, Mathias ran the ball down in the six-yard box. The Birmingham, Ala., native gained possession from an Owl defender and finished her shot in the far-side netting for a 2-0 Aggie lead.
"It was neat for Merritt to get a goal in her debut as an Aggie, but we reminded her that the real start of the season wasn't until next week," joked Guerrieri. "For her to get a goal in that game would be great. I was really pleased for her and thought her and (Whitney) Hooper were a really dynamic front tandem."
The Aggies kept the pressure on Rice in the first half and had another great scoring opportunity in the 27th minute. Three consecutive corner kicks by Shipley yielded a close-range shot from senior Amber Gnatzig that deflected wide and a header from junior Bri Young that Erkel was forced to punch over the crossbar.
A&M carried a 2-0 lead into the locker room at the end of the first half. Eleven minutes into the second period, Shipley scored from the top of the penalty area on a give-and-go from senior Alyssa Mautz. The low-driven shot went past a diving Catherine Fitzsimmons and hit the left-side netting.
The Aggies totaled 11 corner kicks in the match and were dangerous after a pair of kicks in the 58th minute. A header from freshman Rachel Lenz was saved before Mathias lined a shot off the far post.
Texas A&M more than doubled Rice in shots, 22-10, and shots on goal, 13-6. The Aggies forced the Owl keepers to make 10 saves. Young led A&M with seven shots, followed by Shipley (5) and Mathias (4).
A&M officially opens the 2010 season against No. 1 North Carolina on Friday, Aug. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
