UTSA prevailed against Florida Atlantic University Thursday night at Park West Athletic Complex, winning 2-1.
With seven minutes remaining, Roadrunners’ (8-7-3, 3-5-2 AAC) senior defender Sasjah Dade headed the ball into the corner of the goal. Executing a set piece, sophomore midfielder Sophie Morrin kicked off from the corner towards her teammates. It was enough for Dade to get the ball and score her third goal of the season and take the lead over the Owls (3-11-4, 2-6-2 AAC) with their second goal.
“It was great for us to come back to show true resolve and character and who our players are,” coach Derek Pittman said. “Our DNA of fighting all the way until the end and never giving up. We’re really proud.”
The Owls were fixated on finding success in its set pieces and corner kicks but remained unprosperous through most of the game. The ‘Runners started the game with their usual 3-5-2 formation and Florida Atlantic started with a 4-3-3, trying to build from the back.
Finding success off a set piece, senior midfielder Jordyn Hyland scored her first goal of the season by kicking the ball and scoring on the top corner of the goal. Junior defender Rylee Low started the playoff with a throw-in toward junior defender Zoë May. May then headbutted the ball towards Hyland, bringing the score to 1-1 in the second half.
“We prepare for each opponent differently,” Hyland said. “We had a pretty good game plan. If we were to go up a goal, then we would drop back and defend, and if we were down a goal, then we’d put all of our numbers up.”
The Roadrunners took multiple close shots but were deflected by Owls’ goalkeeper Lexi Gonzalez or by the goalpost. Senior midfielder Olivia Alzarez and Dade were persistent with keeping the pressure on the opposing defense by staying on top of them and not allowing them to take the ball far.
“Although people were nervous, I think that we were playing with the idea in the back of our minds that this could be our last game,” Hyland said.
Headbutting the ball into the back of the goal, Owls’ forward Sutton Markee held off senior defender Peyton Godbey after getting the ball from a teammate. During the second half, Gonzalez kicked to center field to midfielder Morgan McDonald and then to Markee.
“We took steps forward this season,” Pittman said. “They showed a tremendous amount of toughness and grit and how they came out and executed the things we’ve been working on. It feels good.”
The first half was slow as most of the attacking was done center pitch with UTSA keeping 56% possession over the ball. UTSA led in shot attempts 6-3 and fouls 8-6 during the first half and ended the game with 14-6 shot attempts on the Owls.
Due to the match between the University of Memphis and the University of Tulsa ending in a 1-1 draw, Tulsa remains No. 8 in the AAC standings. UTSA will not be advancing to the conference tournament despite its win over Florida Atlantic.
