Texas A&M
Cal State Northridge
No. 6 Aggies Blank Matadors Sunday
Sep 19, 2010 | Soccer
Sept. 19, 2010
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 6 Texas A&M soccer team tallied its third shutout of the season with a 5-0 win over Cal State Northridge on Sunday evening at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
The Aggies (7-2) held the Matadors (4-5) to just three shots on goal and senior Kelly Dyer easily made each save for the shutout between the posts.
A&M scored four of its five goals in the second half after getting on the scoreboard via an own goal towards the end of the first period.
"The team defended very well this weekend and we were able to limit dangerous chances," said A&M head coach G Guerrieri. "If we can go out and keep zeros on the scoreboard for the opponent, I like our chances because we have enough attacking weapons that we can create a lot of scoring opportunities."
One of those chances came with four minutes remaining in the first half. A Cal State Northridge foul on the right flank created a free kick for junior Bri Young. Her strike from 30 yards was on frame, but glanced off the head of a Matador defender before going into the back of the net. The own goal gave the Aggies a 1-0 lead going into the locker room for the 15-minute break.
"In the second half we changed our formation and straight from the kickoff the players out there really did a good job," explained Guerrieri. "We established a great level of possession and rhythm to the game."
With the ball at their feet the Aggies were able to create and connect on many dangerous scoring opportunities.
Just four minutes into the half senior Alyssa Mautz found senior Whitney Hooper on the right side of the penalty area on a quick counter. Hooper took the ball towards the end line and threaded a pass to Mathias at the top of the six. Mathias one-touched a shot that bounced off the near post, but A&M kept attacking and less than three minutes later added its second goal.
Sophomore Mary Grace Schmidt found Mautz on the right flank and the O'Fallon, Mo., native unleashed a shot from five yards outside of the right corner of the penalty box. Her strike went over the keeper's head and into the far-side netting to make the score 2-0.
The Aggies took a three-goal lead minutes later. After a throw-in on the left sideline, deep in A&M's attacking third, Hooper created space in the box and fired off a shot that Mathias deflected into the back of the net with the outside of her right foot.
Hooper was on the attack once again in the 66th minute and was taken down hard in the box as she made a move past a Matador defender. Shipley connected on the penalty kick to give A&M a 4-0 lead.
The Aggies' final goal came in the 83rd minute as junior Megan Majewski gathered a loose ball on the right flank, quickly turned and blasted a shot from 40 yards that snuck inside the near post to mark her first career goal and put A&M up 5-0.
"Megan turned and hit the ball really well and it knuckled and buckled and the goalkeeper lost it," said Guerrieri.
Texas A&M held possession for the majority of the match and had a commanding lead in every statistical category including shots (23-13), shots on goal (8-3) and corners (7-2).
Mautz took a game-best seven shots, followed by Mathias with six shots.
The Aggies return to the pitch to begin Big 12 Conference play at home on Friday, Sept. 24 against Colorado. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
