COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 9 Texas A&M Aggies started the season with four consecutive shutouts for the first time in school history as the Maroon & White blanked the San Diego Toreros, 3-0, Sunday evening at Ellis Field.
The victory also extended the Aggies’ school record unbeaten string to 19 matches, with their last loss coming at Auburn (0-1) on September 15, 2017.
Watt scored a goal in her third consecutive match. She leads Texas A&M with four goals on the season. In her last 18 matches, Watt has 30 points on 14 goals and two assists.
The Maroon & White notched a pair of set piece goals with Addie McCain punching in a penalty kick and Kendall Ritchie finding the back of the net on a free kick from 30 yards out.
Ritchie also played a key role in preserving the shutout. She saved a ball off the goal line midway through the second half to keep an equalizer off the board.
The Aggies are off to a 4-0-0 start for the seventh time in school history. With a win next Friday against Oklahoma, the Maroon & White will be 5-0-0 for the first time since 1999.
Texas A&M owned the advantages in shots (19-11), shots-on-goal (8-2) and corner kicks (7-4).
GOAL SUMMARY
6′ – Ally Watt beat the defense down the inside right channel into the penalty box. She unleashed a shot from 12 yards out into the left upper 90. A&M 1, USD 0.
85′ – After San Diego was called for a handball in the box, McCain converted on the penalty kick for her first goal of the season. A&M 2, USD 0.
87′ – From 30 yards out, even with the right edge of the penalty box, Ritchie drove a low line drive inside the left post as the Toreros’ goalkeeper was caught flat-footed. A&M 3, USD 0.
UP NEXT
The Aggies continue their eight-game homestand Friday when they host the Oklahoma Sooners in an 8 p.m. contest on Ellis Field.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach G Guerrieri
On tonight’s game…
“We scored five minutes in and I thought we were rolling. Then the first 25 minutes, were under control and they played within themselves. We were attacking from a lot of different angles. We started making substitutions, which usually strengthen us as we take the next steps. But we kind of lost our minds for a while. We kept trying to do things that we didn’t need to be doing and San Diego is a good team, that is very good on the counter.”
On San Diego’s effort…
“They were going to counter attack and make us pay for it. They almost did a couple of times. Their left wing was very fast. I thought Jordan Hill did a great job on her, but she is still fast and still got away a couple times. Milan Moses got a shot because we dove at her twice and she can’t dive. There on the back post, Katie Lapomarda had a chance, but then we were able to clear off the line. San Diego did a good job. They are a very well coached team. Louise Lieberman does a good job with them. They got themselves back in the game.”
On Ally Watt…
“Phil Stephenson talked to her a lot, that she probably needs to take more time before a lot of the shots. He has given her confidence to do it and she has such pace. If she gets behind somebody, nobody is going to catch her behind. She was able to take that deep breath and bury a great shot because it was going to take a great shot to beat this goalkeeper.”
Junior Forward Ally Watt
On scoring a goal in three consecutive games…
“It feels good. It shows how our team is built to build from the back and we’re unpredictable. Each goal has been different. It’s good to see that the team can change it up each time. You won’t know what we will throw out against each team.”
On her goal…
“I just got the ball at my feet and Emily Bates told me to turn so I trusted her and turned for goal and hoped for the best.”
On what she was thinking during her shot…
“I saw the keeper cheating towards the near post so I assumed if I put it towards the far post she wouldn’t be able to touch it.”
Senior Defender Kendall Ritchie
On her save…
“Jordan {Hill} and Briana {Alston} pushed out so when the cross came in, it went over all of us. I immediately had to cut toward front post and I knew the girl was wide open on the backside. We just had a bit of a miscommunication. I tried to drop in on the backline and defend as best as I could and luckily the ball came right to me.”
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics