HUNTSVILLE, Texas – After two overtime periods, neither team could find an advantage as Lamar University tied Sam Houston State, 1-1, Friday evening at Pritchett Field.
In addition to the score ending in a deadlock, the stat sheet was nearly even between both teams. The Cardinals outshot Sam Houston by six (27-21) but only by two in terms of shots on goal (13-11). The Bearkats ended the night with two more saves (12-10) and were called for two more fouls.
"The defenses played well on both sides of the ball tonight," said LU head coach
Steve Holeman. "We had some opportunities but couldn't convert. I thought the goalkeepers for both teams played well. We got down a goal early in the second half but fought right back to tie things up, so we showed some resiliency. In the overtime, we outshot them 9-3 but just couldn't get the one we needed for the win."
On a night with the defenses had the upper hand, the goalkeepers on both sides of the field were nearly perfect. Freshman
Sandra Nygard played the first 65 minutes and recorded three saves, while sophomore
Jocelyn Hanrath came off the bench to play 45 minutes and record seven saves but also surrendered the lone goal.
Sam Houston State's Christina Hendershot played all 110 minutes recording 10 saves and surrendering a goal.
"Sam Houston has an artificial surface which can present a bit of a challenge for a possession team like us," said Holeman. "We want to control the ball but an artificial surface is much faster so it can be a disadvantage if you're not used to it. Having said that, you have to take your hats off to Sam. They were ready to play tonight and did a great job, especially on the defensive end. It's a point on the road in league play and we'll take it but it's disappointing when you had chances to win."
For the second consecutive week, the Cardinals went into the locker room locked in a scoreless tie. The LU defense didn't allow Sam Houston many looks at the goal, and on the few occasions SHSU was able to get off a shot Nygard was up to the task.
Unlike last week, Big Red's opponent dented the scoreboard first. The Bearkats' Lindsey Bienski found the back of the net in the 59
th minute. The goal seemed to wake up LU's offense. Less than four minutes later the Cardinals answered the SHSU goal with one of their own. Freshman
Anna Loftus pulled the Cardinals even on a penalty kick in the 63
rd minute.
The score remained tied through the rest of regulation. After the first overtime, the score was still knotted at 1. Neither team could pull ahead of the other during two extra periods as the game finished in a tie.
The Cardinals edged out their hosts in shots after the game was tied, 14-10, but neither defense flinched.
The Cardinals return to action Sunday when they travel to Nacogdoches, Texas to take on Stephen F. Austin. The game against the Lumberjacks will begin at 1 p.m. from the SFA Soccer Complex.
"SFA presents a very big challenge on Sunday," said Holeman. They're a very good team and finished second in the league last year. They've been one of the best in the conference for the past five years. We have to turn things around quickly and get focused on SFA."
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