Box Score SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – The University of the Incarnate Word women's soccer team took Texas Southern by storm in a 7-1 win at Benson Stadium on Friday night.
The Cardinals (3-0-0) took 24 minutes to score the opening goal of the game against the visiting Lady Tigers (0-6-0). The first 20 minutes had the look of a promising tight contest, but the goals would just keep on coming for the Cardinals.
It was freshman midfielder
Abigail Koenigs (San Antonio/Brandeis HS) who opened up the score sheet in a first half that was reasonably reserved for the Cardinals. The goal came from a confident finish off a cross from teammate
Sydney Solomon (Schertz/ Randolph HS).
The first of two goals from forward
Katie Miller (Tyler/Tyler JC) followed shortly after as she drove into the center of the box and powered it straight down the middle before the halftime break.
At the opening of the second half, a penalty kick from Texas Southern attacking midfielder, Gabriella Perales, put the Tigers back in the game, but only for a few minutes. A spree of goals in each of the 56
th,58
th, 59
th and 61
st minutes made sure that a winning result for the Cardinals was never in doubt. Amidst the excitement were second goals from Miller and Koenigs, which were accompanied by goals from Solomon and
Sarah Johnson (Austin/Home School) in a five-minute blitz that ended with the Cardinals leading, 6-1.
A chance for the Tigers to reduce the difference came later in the half, as midfielder Marlyn Campa took a free kick that required Cardinal goal keeper
Heather Kowalik (Boerne/Champion HS) to stretch high to tip the ball over the cross bar.
The final goal of the game came in the 74
th minute from defender
Amanda Watkins (San Antonio/Brandeis HS). Breaking forward from an interception high in the Tigers' half put Watkins in a one on one with the keeper where she slotted the ball into the bottom left corner.
For the third straight game the Cardinals drastically outshot their opponents firing off 25 shots compared to only four for the Tigers. Kowalik played all 90 minutes in goal and picked up her third win of the season for UIW while her TSU counterpart Rebecca Hajny made seven saves.
The Cardinals play again at Benson Stadium this Sunday at 7 p.m against local rivals Our Lady of the Lake. They will be looking to start a season 4-0 for the first time since 2001.
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