CHICKASHA, OK: The Texas Wesleyan women's soccer team (11-3, 6-2 SAC) pressured No. 24 University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma (12-2-1, 7-0 SAC) before falling 2-1 on the road in Sooner Athletic Conference action Saturday evening.
Both teams had quality chances in the first half, but Texas Wesleyan's Christy Zwart came up with five saves in the period to keep the game scoreless at halftime.
Just a minute and 36 seconds into the second half, USAO's Thai Silva found the net off an assist from Cristina Ramos. The Drovers got an insurance goal in the 58th minute when Lindsey Daugherty converted a penalty kick.
Down 2-0 on the road against a nationally ranked opponent, the Rams continued to fire away. In the 77th minute, senior Samantha Moore headed in a corner kick from Savannah Hart to get her team within a goal.
The Rams got off several more shots in the waning minutes, but they played down a man after Hart was shown a red card in the 88th minute.
Zwart (10-2) made six more saves in the second half, giving her a career-high 11 on the day. USAO's Morgan Wilson countered with six saves including four in the second half to secure the win.
Each team took three corner kicks in the game, while the foul count was 15 against Texas Wesleyan and 14 against USAO.
The Lady Rams will play their final regular season home game on Saturday, October 28, when they host Wayland Baptist University. That game, scheduled for a 5 p.m. start will be preceded by Senior Day festivities.
Ramblings
- Saturday's loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Lady Rams. Texas Wesleyan had outscored its opponents 17-3 during the streak.
- Texas Wesleyan is now 28-13-5 all-time in SAC play. USAO extended its lead in the all-time series to 9-3-2. The Lady Rams are 8-1-1 all-time against Wayland Baptist.
- Samantha Moore ranks second on the team in goals (13) and points (33). She ranks third in the conference in points and goals, while her seven assists rank sixth.
- Texas Wesleyan will square off with Wayland Baptist in four different sports on Saturday. Texas Wesleyan will host WBU in Football (2 p.m.), Women's Soccer (5 p.m.) and Men's Soccer (7 p.m.) while the Pioneers will play host to the Lady Rams Volleyball team at (12 p.m.).
