HOUSTON – The HCU women's soccer team led twice before falling behind by two goals and then scoring two times in the final 16 minutes to earn a hard-fought draw with the visiting Tarleton State Texans in a weather-delayed non-conference matchup at Sorrels Field on Sunday.
The Huskies (2-3-2) jumped on the board early when Olivia Rossman controlled a cleared ball inside the 18-yard box and quickly took aim with her left foot and put HCU on the board in the fourth minute. It took just over seven minutes for the visiting Texans (0-3-3) to come up with an equalizer.
With the score even at 1-1, HCU again snatched the lead after earning a 20th-minute corner kick which Zylee Dominguez sent into the box and Isabella Dillow directed it into the top right corner of the goal. Six minutes later, Avery Mendez again knotted the score at 2-2. The rest of the half was a bit quieter with the two squads going into halftime tied.
Mendez gave Tarleton the lead with her second goal of the game at the 53:53 mark and 15 minutes later Bailey Pottratz made it a two-goal advantage. The Huskies pulled back to within one in the 75th minute when Dillow fired a shot that was stopped by the Texans keeper with a diving save but Paisley Barela came charging in from the left side and knocked home the rebound. The tying goal came with less than three minutes left to play for the Huskies. Barela flicked on a free kick into the box to Isabella Alamo who had a shot miss just high and clang off the crossbar right to Iliana Sanchez who picked the perfect time for her first collegiate goal.
The Huskies out-shot the Texas, 23-18, and put 13 shots on goal to the visitors' 10. Rossman's goal gives her two on the season after scoring once with two assists on Thursday. Dillow, meanwhile, scored her second goal of the year and was credited with her first assist. The goals by Barela and Sanchez were the first of the year for both.
The Huskies will host Southern at Sorrels Field next Friday, Sept. 11, at 7:00 p.m.
