SAN ANGELO, Texas - Texas Woman's once again found success in the second half with a pair of goals from sophomore Haley Ward to defeat Angelo State, 2-0, in Sunday's Lone Star Conference matchup.
"There really wasn't too much of a difference out there between the teams, both teams were battling, both teams exerted a lot of energy Friday night and somehow just had to muster enough to play on Sunday," TWU head coach Babak Abouzar said.
Play was competitive in the first period, which ended in a scoreless deadlock at the half. The Belles (7-5-2, 5-2-1 LSC) took three shots but only landed one on goal, while the Pioneers (7-5-2, 4-2-2 LSC) proved to have the proper touch, landing both on goal.
"We went in with a game plan and executed," Abouzar said. "We limited what they wanted to do, our defense and keeper went all out. I think that our decision-making was a lot better this game in terms of playing simply."
The Belles put freshman goalkeeper Jazmine Maxwell to work at the end of the first period, keeping play in the Pioneers' box, but her defensive skills kept the first half scoreless.
"[Maxwell] is getting to be a commanding voice at the back line and that's something that we need," Abouzar said. "She came up with some big-time saves off some crosses that could have easily been goals. It's great for our team to have somebody back there that can hold the fort down for us."
Ward would continue to thwart the ASU defense, collecting her first goal of the game at 50:39. Freshman Kaylee Rekieta received a pass from across the field, snatched from the Belles' possession, and passed to sophomore Jazmine Navarro who fed the ball to Ward. Ward's shot got past the Belles' defenders and found the back of the net.
"Today was a total team effort," Abouzar said. "We had 20 players in today, and I think that shows us that it's a total team effort from the starters to the subs."
Angelo State would spend the rest of the game attempting to equalize, but Ward wouldn't be satisfied with a single goal. She scored at 75:01 off an assist from sophomore Emma Green and extended the TWU lead to 2-0. ASU tried to move quickly to recover, but the TWU defense nullified their attack to preserve its shutout victory.
The Belles outshot the Pioneers, 11-9. Ward picked up the most shots on goal with four, while Navarro and junior Hannah Schneider each picked up one for TWU.
Ward, who is currently leading the league in shots, continues to write her name in the record books. With her performance against ASU, she set two new school records - most shots on goal in a season with 37 (33, Chastity Hayter, 2008), and most shots in a season with 66 (65, Emily Meinen, 2006).
"Ward brought in two goals today, which was great, and Emma Green came on, didn't play in the first half, and came in and had an assist," Abouzar said, "I was really impressed with the teamwork out there."
This Pioneers sweep the season series with the Belles having defeated them last month, also with a 2-0 shutout.
TWU now has 14 points and sits in third place in the Lone Star Conference standings with four regular season games remaining.
The Pioneers, who have played on the road the past three games, bring their two-game winning streak home to face Eastern New Mexico (6-5-2, 4-3-1 LSC) at 5 p.m. on Oct. 19 at Pioneer Soccer Park. Friday is Faculty/Staff Appreciation Night.
