AUSTIN, Texas — St. Edward's women's soccer found its attacking rhythm in the second half Wednesday evening, turning a scoreless defensive battle into a flurry of scoring opportunities. However, a late equalizer from near midfield prevented the Hilltoppers from extending their winning streak in a 1-1 draw against Angelo State at Lewis-Chen Family Field.
The Hilltoppers (1-5-2, 1-2-1 Lone Star Conference) outshot the Rambelles 13-6 in the second half and 15-8 overall, building on the attacking connections that produced head coach Nuno Gourgel's first victory in Saturday's 2-0 win over West Texas A&M.
St. Edward's broke through in the 52nd minute when ISABELLA RUIZ fired a shot that deflected off an Angelo State defender and into the net for an own goal. The Hilltoppers continued generating opportunities throughout the second half, but Angelo State goalkeeper Claire Stoermer made five saves after halftime to keep the Rambelles within striking distance.
The match opened as a defensive struggle, with neither team finding much space in the attacking third. Both sides managed just two shots in the first half, and St. Edward's generated the only two corner kicks of the period.
TRULY CUEVAS produced the Hilltoppers' first shot in the 21st minute, forcing Stoermer into a save. TAYLOR WILLIAMSON followed with an attempt wide left less than a minute later, but neither team threatened again before halftime.
St. Edward's emerged from the break with renewed attacking energy, sparked in part by moving RAINEY SIMMONS into a forward role.
Simmons gave the Hilltoppers another dimension in the attacking third, using her speed to stretch the Angelo State defense while reading the field and connecting passes to create opportunities for her teammates. Her movement and vision helped St. Edward's find the attacking rhythm that had been missing during the opening 45 minutes.
RILEY SISSON fired wide less than two minutes into the second half, and RILEY PRIER followed with another attempt before Sisson had a shot blocked in the 49th minute. The sustained pressure finally produced a breakthrough when Ruiz's attempt deflected off an Angelo State defender and into the net at the 51:43 mark.
The Hilltoppers continued pressing after taking the lead, with Simmons helping orchestrate the attack through her movement and distribution. She forced Stoermer into a save in the 64th minute, and DAYLAN NATES tested the Angelo State goalkeeper three minutes later.
MACY JENNINGS provided another attacking spark after returning to the match in the 69th minute. The midfielder forced Stoermer into a save in the 75th minute, then generated another opportunity in the 83rd. CLAIRE SMITH followed the latter with a shot wide left as St. Edward's looked to put the match away.
Instead, Angelo State (1-5-3, 0-3-2 LSC) found an equalizer in the 84th minute.
Addison Brown sent a ball from near midfield toward the St. Edward's goal, catching goalkeeper DARIA SCHLUMBOHM too far off her line. The ball bounced over Schlumbohm and into the net, erasing the Hilltoppers' advantage with 6:22 remaining.
St. Edward's immediately pushed forward in search of a winner. Sisson sent an attempt wide less than a minute after the equalizer, and Jennings forced Stoermer into one final save in the 89th minute.
The Hilltoppers finished with a 52-48 advantage in possession and placed six shots on target. Jennings led St. Edward's with three shots on goal, while Sisson finished with a team-high four attempts. Simmons added two shots, including one on target, but her impact extended beyond the box score. Her second-half move to forward helped open the field for the Hilltoppers, who generated 13 shots after halftime. Schlumbohm recorded three saves.
