Stephen F. Austin
La.-Lafayette
Ladyjacks Roll Past Cajuns
9/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Sept. 5, 2010
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NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Stephen F. Austin scored two penalty kick goals and registered a third goal on a corner kick Sunday afternoon to take a 3-1 win over Louisiana-Lafayette at the SFA Soccer Complex. The three goals scored are a season-high for SFA.
Jordan King set a new school record by connecting on two penalty kicks in the first half to get the Ladyjacks out to a commanding lead. Then, in the second period, Becky Johnson answered a Ragin' Cajuns goal by bending a corner kick in unassisted from the right side.
"We were happy with the combination play that set up the penalties, and then to have Jordan step up on both of them and score them was a perfect situation for us," SFA head coach Tony Amato said.
The victory moved SFA back to .500 on the year with a 3-3-0 record. Louisiana-Lafayette left Nacogdoches with an identical 3-3-0 mark.
King's first PK attempt came in the 21st minute after Kim Kimmel was taken down in the box on a clear run toward the net. King lifted the attempt over UL goalkeeper Amanda Moorefield, who dove to her right in an effort to make the stop.
Twenty minutes later, King was called on again, when Jess Brown was fouled on an attack. This time, she went low and to the right, again beating Moorefield to give SFA a 2-0 advantage. The goals are the first of King's career, and she becomes the first Ladyjack in program history to record two PK goals in a single game, let alone a single half.
"It's always difficult to have two in one game," Amato said, "and when the same player takes them, sometimes funny things can happen. So, fair play to Jordan to want to take the penalties both times, have the courage to do it, then tuck them both away for us. That really changed the game."
SFA carried the 2-0 edge to intermission, holding the Cajuns to just three shots through the end of the first half.
But Louisiana-Lafayette broke through in the 48th minute to make it a one-score game. Courtney Hofland played a through ball to Cayla Chatman on the right wing. She went for the far post past SFA freshman Lacey Lee, who replaced starter Courtney Bauder in net for the start of the second half.
Seven minute later, though, the Ladyjacks found the net on a set play when Johnson curled her corner kick attempt just inside the far post for the first goal of her career. She came from behind the end line in the right corner and struck the ball left-footed, bending it high over the traffic in the box to find the back corner.
"We had asked Becky to whip some [corner kicks] in there and get them in the mix," Amato said. "Fortunately for us, she served it in there and it found the far corner. We've talked about `Hey, we need to score on set pieces,' and today we were able to do that."
With Lee making just her second appearance in net this season and true freshmen Kelsey Allen and Brenda Salazar making their first starts of the year, Amato had several young players logging key minutes for him on Sunday. They played with confidence Sunday, though, and SFA kept the pressure on after the third goal, finishing the game with a 19-8 advantage in shots.
"I thought today was a total team victory," Amato said. "It's been a hard four games in a row for us, and we needed the squad to step up today. We had some people out there who showed us that they wanted to make things happen for this team, and it's always great when you get that response from them."
Bauder recorded two saves and picked up the win to move to 3-3-0 on the year.
SFA will return to action next weekend with a pair of games in Houston. The Ladyjacks will take on the University of Houston Friday in a 5 p.m. match-up, before playing at Houston Baptist on Sunday at 1 p.m.
-- SFA --
