Weekend soccer results mixed
On a weekend in which the Mustang football team absorbed most ofthe athletic attention, the men and women’s soccer teams heldtheir own in a pair of early-season tournaments.
Men’s soccer
Friday evening saw the men’s team play host to theKentucky Wildcats at Westcott Field to kick off the SMU Mi CocinaClassic.
The Mustangs, ranked No. 11 in the nation by NCAA.com, struckfirst, jumping to a 1-0 lead on a penalty kick by sophomoredefender Mynor Gonzalez at the 13:35 mark.
The Wildcats came back just minutes later, however, as juniordefender Thomas Senecal evened the score with a header off ofsenior midfielder Jamal Shteiwi’s corner kick at 22:01.
Senecal’s goal would be the last for a Kentucky offensethat amassed only four shots on goal against senior goalkeeper T.J.Tomasso.
Two second-half goals from midfielders Kellan Zindel (60:44) andJake Jackson (64:55) helped propel the Mustangs to a 3-1victory.
One of the telling statistics of the game came in the final 45minutes of play, when SMU out-shot Kentucky, 13-3.
Sunday night, the Stanford Cardinal came calling, bringing withthem an arsenal of offensive weapons and a vastly improveddefense.
The match was a scoreless draw well into the second half. Thefirst blemish came at the 54:56 mark when senior forward DarrenFernandez touched in a crossing pass from sophomoremidfielder/defender Galen Thompson, putting the Cardinal up1-0.
Freshman midfielder Evan Morgan added to the Cardinal’slead at 79:46, when he headed a corner kick from senior defenderJames Twellman, the tournament MVP, past Tomasso.
Morgan’s goal was the first of his collegiate career.
On the defensive, Stanford’s sophomore goalkeeper, AndrewKertunen, halted the Mustang offense with six saves.
Stanford went on to win the tournament, Tulsa took second, theMustangs finished third and Kentucky was fourth.
Following Sunday’s action, the all-tournament team wasannounced, including SMU’s first-game goal scorers Zindel andJackson.
The men (1-1-0) next head to St. Louis to take on the St. LouisUniversity Billikens (2-0-0) at 7:30 p.m. this Friday.
Women’s soccer
The women’s soccer team experienced a similar fate overthe weekend as they also split two games against dauntingchallengers in South Bend, IN.
The Notre Dame Addidas Classic kicked off with SMU facing No. 2Santa Clara in what ended up a battle of a potent offense and onebusy goalkeeper.
The Lady Broncos drew first blood, as sophomore forward TinaEstrada headed a right-side cross past senior goalkeeper AmandaClark for a 1-0 Santa Clara lead.
The Lady Mustangs mustered a goal against sophomore goalkeeperJulie Ryder, and it came in the form of an Olivia ‘O Rearpenalty kick to knot the score at one late in the second half.
Ninety minutes would not be enough to settle the match,however.
Two overtimes were required before Santa Clara’s seniormidfielder, Leslie Osborne, ended the contest with a cross fromsenior forward Megan Kakadelas in the 107th minute of play.
Goalkeeper Amanda Clark had nine saves against the LadyBroncos.
Another outstanding performance from Clark was sufficient enoughfor a 2-1 win at the hands of the Stanford Cardinal on Sunday.
Senior midfielder Jill Heinemann put SMU on the board first, asshe hit a deflection from the top of the box into the net at the15:12 mark.
Less than 10 minutes later, freshman forward Krystal Bailey wasable to chip a crossing shot past Stanford goalkeeper NicoleBarnhart to give the Mustangs a 2-0 lead.
Barnhart allowed two goals on the afternoon while collectingonly one save.
A late goal by sophomore midfielder/forward Hedi Herrick was notenough, as Clark gathered six more saves, bringing her weekendtotal to 13.
Sisters Kimber and Krystal Bailey, both freshmen out of BishopLynch High School in Garland, were selected to the all-tournamentteam.
After their solid effort in South Bend, the Lady Mustangsreceived a national ranking of 24, according to the NSCAA/adidaspoll. The team is also ranked No. 19 in the soccerbuzz.com poll andNo. 25 by Soccer America.
Friday, the Lady Mustangs (2-1-1) return home to host the SamHouston State University Bearkats (1-2-0). Kickoff is set for 7p.m. at Westcott Field.
