Two second-half goals lifted No. 20 Texas Tech over the Georgia soccer team Friday night as the Red Raiders defeated the Bulldogs 2-1 in front of a sellout crowd at the John Walker Soccer Complex.
The second-half didn’t go as the Bulldogs (0-2-1) had hoped after heading to the locker rooms up 1-0 at halftime. A goal in the 53’ off of a header from Texas Tech (2-1) midfielder Cassie Conarty evened up the score at 1-1, before Maddie Crabtree put the Red Raiders up 2-1 in the 73’. Georgia battled until the final whistle but was unable to find the back of the net to score the equalizer late in the contest.
Head coach Billy Lesesne was encouraged by his team’s effort and overall performance.
“I thought we played well the first-half,” Lesesne said. “We possessed the ball well and kept it in pretty dangerous situations. We had a lot of scoring opportunities and were fortunate enough to score one. Texas Tech has a very strong program and a strong tradition and we knew that they were going to give us a tough shot in the second-half. They scored a goal early in the second-half off of a set piece and you could feel the momentum shift in their favor a little bit. We competed tonight and I think that’s the measure of a growing team. We played well against a good team on their home opener and I think we’ll be successful if we can continue to give these types of efforts.”
In the 34’ minute sophomore defender Mariel Gutierrez put Georgia up 1-0 via an assist from fellow sophomore Stephanie Krouskos. Krouskos was driving the ball towards the corner of the defense before finding an open Gutierrez in the middle of the box. The defender imitated her best striker skills and wasted no time sneaking a header in above the Red Raider goalkeeper.
The Bulldogs and Red Raiders battled back and forth for most of the first half, with Georgia controlling the final minutes following Gutierrez’s goal. Several solid defenses plays from the Bulldog’s back defensive line highlighted the early minutes of the first half. Bria Washington, Caroline Waters and Emma Sonnett each played crucial roles in keeping the scoreboard clean for the Bulldogs. Georgia and Texas Tech each took eight shots in the first half.
The final stat line read fairly even with Texas Tech outshooting Georgia 17-13 overall. Bulldog goalkeeper Louise Hogrell finished with three saves. Georgia attempted five corner kicks to Texas Tech’s three.
The Bulldogs round out the weekend in Sunday in Stillwater, Oklahoma at 2 p.m. ET vs. Oklahoma State. The Cowgirls (1-1) are coming off of a 2-0 loss to rival Oklahoma. Oklahoma State defeated Mercer 2-0 in its season opener.