Ninth-ranked Arkansas Soccer (3-0) defeated No. 5 Texas A&M (1-1) in a Top 10 battle on Sunday afternoon at Razorback Field, 2-1. The Razorbacks have now won three-straight against the Aggies after dropping eight in-a-row from 1994-2017. Two of those wins occurred when the Aggies were ranked in the top 5 nationally (2018 – 2nd). Arkansas is now 20-1-2 at home since 2018 and has taken down two top 5 clubs at Razorback Field the past two seasons.
HOW IT HAPPENED
>> Anna Podojil sent a ball across the box in the 10th-minute and Parker Goins beat her defender as she deflected one off the post and into the back of the net.
>> A ball dropped to the feet of Kayla McKeon after it bounced around the Aggie box and the Texas A&M ‘keeper wasn’t able to clear it. McKeon tapped it home in the 53rd-minute for her first goal of the season.
>> Aggie Barbara Olivieri laid off a ball for Addie McCain and she put away a goal from the top of the box in the 61st-minute. It was her third goal of the season.
THE RUN OF PLAY
The Aggies controlled the run of play early in the match, but Goins gave Arkansas a lead in the 10th-minute. It was the second-straight match in which the Razorbacks have scored within the opening 10 minutes. Despite getting five shots on goal, Texas A&M’s best chance of the afternoon came in the 24th-minute, but Jimena Lopez missed a penalty kick that would have evened the scoring.
Minutes later Razorback Nayeli Perez had her own shot bounce off the woodwork in the 30th-minute as Arkansas went to the locker room with a one-goal advantage.
After coming back from a season-ending injury last season, McKeon picked up her first goal of the year after Ava Tanksersley challenged the Aggie ‘keeper, not allowing her to cleanly clear it out of the box. McKeon collected the rebound and pushed it in the net for the 2-0 Razorback lead.
Texas A&M would get one of their own eight minutes later, but Arkansas was able to hold on to the lead for the remaining 30 minutes.
NEXT UP
The Razorbacks will travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala. to face the No. 15 Alabama Crimson Tide on Sunday, Oct. 11. First kick is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and the match will be televised on ESPNU.
