No. 17 A&M Blanks Loyola-Chicago

Sunday, September 25

College Station

1:30 PM

Texas A&M

8-4-0, 2-0Big 12

Loyola-Chicago

3-6-1, 0-0HorizonL

Loyola-Chicago

Texas A&M

Sep 25, 2011 | Soccer

Box Score

By: Texas A&M Athletics

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Junior Nora Skelton netted two goals and contributed an assist as the No. 17 Texas A&M soccer team (8-4, 2-0 Big 12) shut out Loyola-Chicago (3-6-1) 5-0 on Sunday at Ellis Field.

The Aggies overwhelmed the Ramblers, posting a 31-to-9 shots advantage with 13 on goal compared to LUC's six. Freshman Jordan Day played all 90 minutes in goal for A&M, grabbing six saves in the shutout. The Aggies also took seven corner kicks, while Loyola-Chicago had just three.

Strong winds from the south kept the ball floating toward the Aggie defending half in the first period, but Day and the hard-working A&M defense stopped the Ramblers' six first-half shots from finding their way into the goal.

"Overall I thought it was a pretty good performance by our girls," head coach G Guerrieri said. "Early-on playing against a 23-or-24 mile-an-hour wind was a challenge. I thought Jordan came up big on some saves today, which was great for continuing her development and her confidence. Our defense again looked pretty darn solid all the way around."

Fighting against the powerful gusts, the Aggies started a scoring rally in the 35^th minute when junior transfer Lindsey Witz netted her first goal as an Aggie in only her second match with the Maroon & White. Freshman Katie Perry sent a ball from midfield to freshman Allie Bailey along the right flank. Bailey dribbled down and crossed the ball through the goal mouth with a pass to Witz, waiting in the six-yard box. Witz one-timed a shot just inside the left post for the first goal of the match.

"Lindsey is a great athlete and that athleticism allows her to cover a lot of ground," Guerrieri said. "When we put her in the midfield, a lot of times it's a real boost because of the extra yardage that she is able to cover. I thought she was going to score in the first two minutes that she came in on Friday night, and very nearly missed that chance but it was a great goal today, and really well-set up by Allie Bailey."

The Aggies waited just two minutes to score again as Skelton's first goal came in the 37^th minute. Her shot was off of a cross, from freshman Annie Kunz who guided the ball low along the right side of the field, pulling the LUC goalkeeper out of the goal mouth. Skelton approached the goal from the left edge of the six-yard box and fired a laser. Rambler defender Chelsie Stokes attempted to block the ball with her body, but Skelton's shot was too strong and the Aggies took a 2-0 lead.

Less than three minutes later Kunz took the Aggies into the half with a final first-period goal. Sophomore Rachel Lenz pushed the ball through the midfield to freshman Bianca Brinson, who seared down the attacking half to the end line. Bending a cross from the right, Brinson found Kunz in the box and picked up an assist as the forward scored her 10^th goal of the season and A&M went to the locker room with a trio of goals on the board.

The Aggies came out with a bang in the second half with the wind at their backs, controlling the ball for nearly all of the final 45 minutes.

Just over three minutes into the half, Skelton attacked again. Senior Merritt Mathias' corner kick was perfectly placed to the far side of the box where Skelton shot through traffic past the right post and into the back of the net for a 4-0 A&M lead.

"The ball that Merritt was able to play beyond the Loyola corner kick defense to Nora, who steps in and gets a full volley back across and into the back of the net was great," Guerrieri said. "Actually [associate head coach] Phil Stephenson drew that up before the game, knowing that the wind would probably make it difficult for us to keep it in the goal mouth. Nora did it even better than drawn-up. Good for her and really a great weekend for Nora."

The roles reversed six minutes later when Mathias nailed a blast for the Aggies' fifth-and-final goal of the match, assisted by Skelton. Junior Beth West brought the ball down along the left flank and passed to Skelton, who redirected the ball along the end line. Skelton's cross to Mathias at the right post was spot-on as the Birmingham, Ala., native gave A&M a 5-0 lead that the Aggies would keep through the 90^th minute.

Despite ending the scoring run there, the Aggies never let up through the end of the match. Mathias narrowly missed a second goal just four minutes later when her shot from the top of the Aggies' attacking third was saved by LUC keeper Katie Groesch. Groesch grabbed the ball and almost lost control of it when it slipped through her hands.

Bailey forced another save in the 67^th minute before junior Mary Grace Schmidt's shot off of a corner kick by freshman Leigh Edwards hit the crossbar a minute later. Redshirt junior Katie Hamilton wasted no time with the rebound, heading the ball in for a second save in seven seconds.

The Ramblers couldn't control the ball long enough to get it back into their attacking half and the Aggies finished the day with a 5-0 shutout and an 8-4 record on the season.

"We continue to attack well and our defense gets better all the time," Guerrieri said. "We feel good now. We're on a five-game winning streak and we're getting ready to take a very tough road trip into Missouri and Kansas."

Next weekend the Aggies continue Big 12 play at Missouri and Kansas. Friday's game in Columbia, Mo., will start at 6:30 p.m., while Sunday's match is set for a 1:00 p.m. kickoff. To learn more about Texas A&M soccer, log on to AggieAthletics.com.