Moore’s Historic Goal Sets Tone as Ladyjacks Knock Off Cougars in Houston

Sunday, August 12

Houston, Texas

6:00 P.M

Stephen F. Austin

Houston (Exhibition)

Moore’s Historic Goal Sets Tone as Ladyjacks Knock Off Cougars in Houston

8/12/2018 9:32:00 PM | Women's Soccer

SFA scores just 15 seconds into 2-0 victory on road

By: Kevin Meyer | Assistant Director of Athletic Media Relations

HOUSTON, Texas – A picture perfect start to the match was in store for the Stephen F. Austin women's soccer program on Sunday in the final exhibition for the team. Senior forward Breanna Moore's shot just 15 seconds into the contest would score, staking SFA out to an early lead and providing the game-winning point for the visitors. The goal was the earliest in recorded history for the program, and helped propel them to a 2-0 victory at Carl Lewis Complex over the home side.

"The game itself was a tremendous challenge", said SFA head coach Wally Crittenden. "Houston is a team that's doing really good things, they're extremely athletic as a team and with this being their lone exhibition they brought a fantastic energy and intensity, and I was excited to see how our kids responded. If we want to make a go at this thing and compete into October, we need to make sure that we're in a position to compete despite being tired from playing on Friday. To go through all that preparation and see our competitive character and attitude, I thought we were really able to do some good things."

After the opening kickoff was knocked into the Houston half by the Ladyjacks, a charging Elise Davis blocked a clearance from a Cougar defender and then corralled the loose ball on the way towards goal. Davis then found Moore with a quick pass, and Moore's shot slid past the keeper and across the goal mouth, despite a Houston defender's fervent attempt to save it. After a few tense seconds, the goal verdict was upheld and SFA was on the board just 15 seconds into the contest.

"We've scored some early goals off the kickoff press before, but I don't think it's been that quick", Crittenden said of the early goal. "It's tricky, because on one hand you're ahead early and it gives you some breathing room, but on the other hand you still have 89+ minutes left to play. I was very impressed with the maturity and discipline, we didn't sit back and be content with that goal, and we withstood some really good attacks from Houston while at the same time giving us a position to counter."

Not content with the early score, the 'Jacks continued to fight for a second tally, and nearly found it in the 15^thminute, as a cross off the foot of Katie Jennings floated into the box and past the UH goalkeeper. Unfortunately, a diving Moore was unable to put her head on the ball, despite an attempt that carried her into the goal instead.

Determined to equalize, the Cougars started to take command on the offensive end, utilizing fresher legs to gain headway against SFA's backline. A 'Jacks deflection saved a goal on a dangerous service into the box in the 18^thminute, and a pair of saves in short succession by Allyson Halliday in the 23^rdminute kept the Cougars off the scoreboard. Even still, Houston kept the pressure on, and would find the back of the net in the 37^thminute, only to see the goal waived off on a deserved offside call.

"Houston was certainly doing some good things, as you can expect good teams to do against you", Crittenden added. "That's one of the reasons why we schedule a really good team on the road, because we want to see how our kids handle that pressure and a team coming at them as Houston did. When you start checking boxes of things you want to achieve in the final weekend heading into the regular season, we were able to play against and break down a team that tried to bunker against us on Friday, and then we came out on the road and played a very athletic and rested team that demanded a lot of us from an execution standpoint."

If carrying the narrow lead into halftime was a coup for the Ladyjacks, then the second half bore further fruit, as a defensive turnover in the center circle broke to Sophia Fondren, who played a through ball ahead to Katelyn Termini, who slotted the ball past the goalkeeper with great aplomb to double the lead.

After a period of back and forth play, the 'Jacks found a third goal off the foot of sophomore Sabrina Segovia, only to see it waived off due to a foul call. As Segovia kept pace with a Cougar defender on a 50/50 ball headed towards goal, the Houston goalkeeper sprinted out to corral the ball. The defensive players collided, and the ball bounced a few feet away with Segovia and the defender equidistant from it. Segovia would score with a sliding shot and the 'Jacks enjoyed some brief elation before the goal was waved off by the officials.

SFA wasn't finished, however, and Mari Gillespie nearly scored on a brilliant shot in the 81^stminute. Finding herself with the ball and some open space, Gillespie spotted the goalkeeper off her line and scrambling to get back, and she loosed a shot from upwards of 35 yards out, which caromed off the post and away.

Despite being outshot 18-6, the Ladyjacks created dangerous chances throughout the night, and continued to display the depth of attackers on the roster. Taking into account Segovia's waived off goal and Gillespie's post miss, the 'Jacks have had seven different scorers in the two exhibition contests, and outscored their opponents 6-0. Twenty of the SFA's 23 players saw action on Sunday night as well, with goalkeepers Allyson Halliday and Maddie Talbot combining to pitch the shutout between the sticks.

Next up for SFA after some well-deserved rest is the home and season opener against LSU-Shreveport on Friday, followed by a matchup with SEC foe Mississippi State two days later on Sunday.

-SFA-