COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 4 Texas A&M Aggies topped the No. 18 Kansas Jayhawks, 3-0, Sunday afternoon at Ellis Field to start 10-0-0 for the first time in program history.
The Aggies got a goal and an assist from Ally Watt. Addie McCainlogged a goal for the second consecutive match and Abby Grace Cooper broke the scoring seal late in the first half with her first career goal.
Texas A&M stretched its school-record unbeaten string to 25 games, one shy of the SEC record of 26 set by Florida in 1998-99. The Aggies’ last loss came at Auburn (0-1) on September 15, 2017.
The Maroon & White scored multiple goals for the 11th consecutive match. The run equals the school record of 11 set from October 15, 1994 to September 8, 1995.
With their eighth clean sheet of the season, the Aggies’ continued their best defensive start in Texas A&M annals. The eight shutouts are the most through 10 matches and the two goals are the fewest allowed by an Aggie squad in that span.
Cosette Morché made two saves to notch her 22nd Division I shutout, her 16th in two seasons in Aggieland and her SEC-leading eighth of 2018.
The 10 consecutive wins to start the season topped the school record set in 1996 and equaled in 1997.
Although the shots were equal for the contest (12-12), the Maroon & White had the best scoring opportunities, notching advantages in shots-on-goal (8-2) and corner kicks (9-2).
GOAL SUMMARY
39′ – From the center stripe, Jordan Hill placed a perfect pass to Cooper entering the right corner of the penalty box. Cooper cut the ball inside with her first touch to make two defenders blow by her and then unleashed a left-footed shot inside the near post for her first career goal. A&M 1, KU 0.
65′ – From the left touchline, Cienna Arrieta sent a pass into Watt just inside the penalty box. Watt knocked the ball out to McCain who sent a first-touch, right-footed laser from left of the penalty arc into the near post upper 90. A&M 2, KU 0.
67′ – Asdis Halldorsdottir sent a rocket in from 18 yards. Her shot hit the crossbar and caromed out to Watt who lofted a right-footed volley from seven yards out off the top of a defender’s head at the goal line. A&M 3, KU 0.
UP NEXT
The Aggies head to Arkansas for a Thursday night match against the Razorbacks. The 7 p.m. contest will be televised on the SEC Network.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach G Guerrieri
On today’s win…
“That’s a win that we can really be proud of because Kansas is a really good team. You can see as far as total shots, it was a straight up even game. It was just a matter of execution on our side and great defending on our side. I thought Briana Alston had a fantastic game again against a real high quality line of strikers for them. Mark Francis has always done a tremendous job of having his attacking players really well coordinated so it’s always a challenge anytime you can step out there with them. I told Cosette and our backs that that’s a shutout they can really be proud of.”
On assists by the backline…
“If you look at what our defenders did, not just in stopping the other team, but in helping us to get attacks started. They all did a terrific job. You know that Kendall Ritchie is a weapon and it’s great to see Jordan {Hill} and Briana Alston, who had an assist on Friday night, get involved in it as well.”
Texas A&M Junior Forward Ally Watt
On her goal…
“I was really hoping Asdis’s shot was going in, because that was a really good strike. It was my job to be around the goal to put the ball back in. I put my foot on it, and I think the defender helped it in. I just put it on frame and hoped it went in.”
On this year’s start of the season…
“It just shows that we have been working really hard. All the hard work we had in the spring and summer has been paying off. It just shows that we are staying focused and we are not letting anything stop us from making history this season. We are looking for championships, so hopefully we are going to get those.”
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics