HOUSTON – Heading into the final game of the regular season needing a win to secure a spot in the Southland Conference Tournament, the HCU women's soccer team picked up a well-earned three points with a 2-0 win over visiting UIW on Friday evening at Sorrels Field.
The Cardinals (6-9-2, 3-6-1 SLC) had a dangerous look early when Sierra Wannamaker's shot from a tough angle was on target but
Evelyn Slaughter was there for the Huskies (6-10, 4-6 SLC) to keep it from crossing the goal line and clear it out of the area in the third minute. The rest of the first half saw HCU lead 8-4 in total shot attempts but neither team's keeper was forced to work too hard for saves.
HCU wasted little time getting on the board after the break with the offense pushing forward and earning a free kick 6 yards outside the 18-yard box. Playing the ball quickly, a
Mia Salas shot was blocked by a defender but fell to Slaughter who quickly passed to a centrally located
Olivia Rossman who put the ball into the net at the 47:08 mark. UIW quickly worked the ball downfield following the goal and Amaya Spearman put a well-struck shot toward the top right corner but
Chloe Bagshaw made the save and deflected the attempt wide.
In the 59
th minute, Salas gained control of the ball just outside the box before quickly turning and firing to the top right corner over an outstretched Erica Defferding for a 2-0 HCU lead. The Huskies held on the rest of the way for the clean sheet and the 2-0 win.
The goals were the fourth of the season for both Rossman and Salas and it was Rossman's second game-winning goal of the year. The HCU defense and Bagshaw secured the team's fourth clean sheet of the season with Bagshaw needing just one save to shutout the Cardinals.
The Huskies will travel to Corpus Christi, Texas for the opening round of the 2023 SLC Tournament as the No. 7 seed, facing second-seeded Texas A&M-Commerce on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 4:00 p.m.
