UTSA’s soccer team broke Colorado State’s winning streak on Sunday with their 1-0 win at Park West. This matchup was the first time the Roadrunners (4-2) have met the Mountain West Conference Rams (3-2-1).
Coming off a scoreless first half, the Roadrunners took five shots, two on goal and were awarded four corner kicks. They also led the first half with a 60% possession rate. Junior defender Zoë May and sophomore midfielder Michelle Polo both took shots on goal.
One kick from Polo and the ball was launched towards sophomore forward Tyler Coker. Coker kept the nearly out-of-bounds ball in play and slowly carried the ball up left field into the opponent’s third.
“I think one of my own strategies is I like to kind of hesitate a little bit and get them to stop, but then my first touches are just fast enough to get around them,” Coker said.
Once she made her way into the goal area, Coker swept the ball past two Rams defenders. In an attempt to thwart the ‘Runners lead, Rams senior midfielder Avery Vander Ven got under the ball but it ricocheted off her shin and Coker’s ball found its way into the top right corner of the goal for the score.
“I feel like I’ve been on the edge of scoring, so it was super exciting,” Coker said. “Coach Pittman always says that the margins of winning are super small and that’s so true. I just give credit to our whole team.”
The Rams tried to break through UTSA’s defense, and did at times, but they couldn’t get past sophomore keeper Jasmine Kessler. Though she didn’t need to make any saves during the first half, she stepped out of her goal to make occasional cross-field goal kicks and took a free kick as well.
“It’s honestly a lot easier to stay present in the game if I’m part of the game beyond just using my hands,” Kessler said. “If I can be that back pass option, that clearance, the free kicks. Then, not only am I talking to the team all the time but I’m also making sure people are aware of runners, tracking, stepping, going up and staying down.”
With this win over Colorado State, the UTSA soccer team remained undefeated at home for the 2024 season and Pittman earned his 50th career win as the team’s head coach.
“Colorado State’s a gritty team,” Pittman said. “We knew they were going to be really difficult. The grit and toughness that came out of our team today was huge and I’m very proud of them.”
UTSA’s soccer team will have some time to rest and practice ahead of their next game. UTSA will play Central Arkansas at 1 p.m. Sunday, September 8 at Bill Stephens Track/Soccer Field Complex.
