COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M soccer fell in a 2-0 match against the Ole Miss Rebels Sunday afternoon on Ellis Field.
Despite dominating the margins in shots (16-6), shots on goal (4-2) and tying the battle for corner kicks (4-4), the Aggies were shut out by an opportunistic Rebel squad. Seven different A&M players attempted a shot in the match with Barbara Olivieri leading the way with four. Playing with in the midst of blustery weather at Ellis Field, the Aggies had three solid shooting opportunities find the woodwork in the opening act, including a blistering shot from Katie Smith in the 23rd minute that hit the right post due to a menacing crosswind.
Scoring opportunities were hard to come by in the first 18 minutes, with Ole Miss dominating the margins in shots and corner kicks early on. The Aggie attack found some rhythm in the 20th minute with their first two shots on goal of the match, but stifling play from the Rebel goalkeeper kept the opening period deadlocked. The Maroon & White continued to find offensive opportunities after a brief official’s timeout, but both sides returned to the locker room with a scoreless tie at the half.
A&M saw a couple of scoring chances in the early moments of the second, but Ole Miss would be the first team on the board following a Channing Foster goal on a throw-in assist by Taylor Radecki. Foster added another score for the Rebels in the 85th minute to ice the match, finalizing the 2-0 result.
Each squad stuck with the same goalkeeper for the totality of the match, as Ole Miss trotted out Ashley Orkus while the Aggies placed Kenna Caldwell in goal. Orkus had a dominant outing, facing four shots on goal and coming away with four saves while logging Ole Miss’ fourth shutout of the 2021 campaign.
The Rebels improve to 10-2-2 with a 5-1-0 ledger against Southeastern Conference opponents. Texas A&M drops to 6-7-1 with a 2-4-0 conference record. The Aggies maintain a 7-3-2 record in the all-time series with Ole Miss.
SCORING SUMMARY
52’ – Radecki’s throw in extended past the Aggie defense toward the net, and Foster capitalized by sending a successful shot to the back right corner of the net. MISS 1, TAMU 0
85’ – Davis found Foster for her second goal of the match on the left side of the field. MISS 2, TAMU 0
UP NEXT
The Maroon & White remain in Aggieland this week, as A&M plays host to the Alabama Crimson Tide in a 7 p.m. kickoff on Ellis Field. Texas A&M will feature members of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Class of 2022 in a senior night celebration before the match.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach G Guerrieri
On his impressions of the match…
“I’m frustrated for our players because they played hard and created some good chances. We have to learn from our experiences, and we can learn from what our opponents have been able to do. We’ve got to be able to go out and play with the same type of enthusiasm as we did when we were chasing the game in the last 17 minutes. I thought that the fight of our players at that time was fantastic, so now we have to do that for a full 90 minutes.”
Sophomore defender Lauren Geczik
On the confidence that her team has moving forward…
“The belief isn’t gone. We know what we need to do. We need to win the rest of our games. It comes down to converting our chances and scoring goals. Everyone on the team knows that, so we are going to work on that in practice this week and then make it happen on Friday.”
