No. 8 WSoc Moves Past TCU
November 05, 2014 03:29 PM | General
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Two scores off the bench helped push the No. 8-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team to a 2-1 victory over TCU this afternoon in the quarterfinal round of the 2014 Big 12 Soccer Championship, at Swope Soccer Village.
Junior midfielder Leah Emaus and freshman forward Michaela Abam, the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, tallied the scores for WVU (15-2-2, 7-0-1), and sophomore midfielder Ashley Lawrence had the helper on both. The two-assist performance the third of the season for the Toronto, Ontario, native.
The win pushes the Mountaineers’ unbeaten streak to 16, two short of matching the program record. WVU, the three-time reigning conference regular-season champion and the defending tournament champion, advances to the championship semifinal for the second straight year. It is the squad’s first win over TCU at the championship, and the Mountaineers improve to 3-1-1 all-time against the Horned Frogs (8-8-3, 1-4-3).
“This is a huge win,” said Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown, the three-time reigning Big 12 Coach of the Year. “Again, we had to play a frustrating five-back system, but the girls displayed tremendous patience and broke TCU down. It wasn’t easy to do what we did, so I’m very proud of this team’s resiliency. We found a way to win.”
Up two goals in the 72nd minute, TCU cut into the Mountaineers’ advantage, as a touch-foul by sophomore defender Carly Black near the goal line gave the Horned Frogs a penalty kick. Bobbi Clemmer converted her chance, but TCU would get no closer.
The Horned Frogs’ goal was the first allowed by WVU at the Big 12 Soccer Championship since the Mountaineers’ 2-0 loss to TCU in the 2012 quarterfinals on Oct. 31, 2012.
The goal aside, Mountaineer junior Hannah Steadman was steady in net today, making three saves, including two in the first half, for her first postseason win at WVU.
TCU’s Vittoria Arnold finished with 10 saves, two more than she made in the teams’ 0-0 draw on Sept. 26.
Abam tallied her team-best fourth game-winner of the season in the 68th minute, connecting on a through pass from Lawrence for her team-best eighth goal of the season. Lawrence was special in the setup, bringing the ball up field and putting her pass only where Abam could reach it. The streaking forward held up to stay onside before running up onto the ball near the six-yard box and sending a low shot toward the far post.
Emaus gave WVU the lead heading into the locker room, as she made good on the Mountaineers’ 14th shot in the 44th minute, burying her chance past the outstretched arms of Arnold toward the far post. Lawrence made a great individual effort in the set-up, taking the ball from just outside the 18-yard box and driving toward the goal line, beating multiple Horned Frogs. From there, she sent a nicely timed cross into a waiting Emaus, who did not hesitate with her shot.
Junior forward Kailey Utley came within inches of giving WVU its second two-goal lead in the 76th minute, but her low shot from outside the box hugged the far left post and trickled out of bounds.
WVU matched its season high with 31 shots and finished with a 31-9 edge. The Horned Frogs earned a 4-3 advantage in corner kicks.
The Mountaineers came out shooting this afternoon, taking five shots in the first seven minutes, including two from junior midfielder Cari Price. Price nearly converted her first chance, but her shot from 30-yards out was tipped away by Arnold and kept in play.
Price threatened again 20 minutes later. After she received a pretty flick from midfielder Amanda Hill, she beat two TCU defenders and took another blast, this time near the top of the box. Arnold came up with the save, but she had to check the ball in her hands before officially negating the chance.
Though the Horned Frogs’ first-half chances were few, TCU’s look in the 40th minute forced a brilliant save from Steadman. Brooke Ingram’s shot threatened to sneak a ball under the cross bar, but Steadman timed her jump and punched the chance up and away.
“Getting this win today was a critical piece for this team’s success,” Izzo-Brown explained. “Now, we march on and move on to Friday’s semifinal.”
The Mountaineers will face the winner of No. 4-seed Texas Tech – No. 5-seed Texas on Friday, Nov. 7, at 6:30 p.m. ET. WVU earned wins over both teams this season, defeating the Longhorns, 2-0 in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 28, and the Red Raiders, 4-2 in Morgantown, on Oct. 10.
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