Soccer beats SFA to remain undefeated
With a 5-0 win over Stephen F. Austin State University last Sunday, the soccer team kept its undefeated streak alive at eight games and ended a streak of 17 consecutive home wins for the Ladyjacks. Rice (7-0-1) finishes the first half of its season tonight at 7 p.m. against Texas State University in San Marcos.
Texas State, whose only win of the season came Sept. 1 against Centenary College, will look to kickstart their season against the undefeated Owls.
“I think we’re seeing every opponent that we have as equally threatening as the next,” junior forward Clory Martin said. “We’re seeing every team we play as Texas, and that’s how we need to go out every game.”
The weather in Nacogdoches made Rice’s trip to Stephen F. Austin (3-3) an adventure. At the four minute mark, the game was delayed about an hour due to lightning. Rice came out firing following the delay, and Clory Martin scored from 18 yards out in the eighth minute to give the Owls a 1-0 lead.
“We started the first four minutes really well, and we made it even more intense when we got back on the field,” Clory Martin said.
In the 23rd minute, senior defender Laura Barber corralled a corner kick from freshman defender Kellen Schugart and scored on a 15-yard shot to give Rice a two-goal lead the Owls took to the half.
Rice didn’t take long to get warmed up in the second half — in less than three minutes, the Owls had expanded their lead to 5-0. In the 55th minute junior defender Beth Martin tallied her first goal of the season by beating the Bobcat goalkeeper from 12 yards out, assisted by sophomore midfielder Christine Petric. Then in the 56th minute, the Martins completed the back-to-back goal combination as Clory sent a shot into the upper netting for her second goal of the match. In the 57th minute, freshman defender/midfielder Katelyn Ostendorf scored her third goal of the season off a Clory Martin pass to push the Owl lead to five goals.
Clory Martin’s two-goal performance upped her goal total to six for the season, tripling her total from the 2005 season. She has now scored five goals in her last two games. Martin said she feels confident after devoting more time to preparation.
“All last year, I missed the whole pre-game preparation,” Martin said. “I just kind of forgot that I needed to do it. I’ve been focusing on it a lot more, and it’s been making a huge difference personally.”
Southern Methodist University, Rice’s top Conference USA rival, beat Stephen F. Austin in an exhibition match 5-0 earlier in the season.
One noteworthy aspect of Rice’s recent play is its defense. The Owls have allowed just three goals all season, shutting out their last five opponents. Senior goalkeeper Amy McClintock has a 0.26 goals-against average, and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America named her player of the week on Tuesday.
Clory Martin said the Owls see the Texas A&M exhibition match as the turning point in the season. Rice fell to the Aggies 8-0 in College Station Aug. 13 and since then have not been beaten.
“The energy has completely changed since when we played Texas A&M,” Clory Martin said. “I’m just completely intoxicated with how we’re playing.”
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