PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — After halftime, Tarleton State quickly turned a competitive match into a blowout, leading to a shutout victory for the Texans in Prairie View on Friday night.
The Texans (1-2-5) shut out the Prairie View A&M Panthers (0-6-1) at Lady Panther Soccer Field 4-0. Tarleton State head coach Erik Solberg led the Texans to their first win of the season and his first at the helm for the Purple and White.
"I am really proud of our team's effort tonight," Solberg said. "I thought we saw the culmination of a lot of hard work over the past couple of months finally pay off – we scored some great goals and really earned the shutout. There is definitely still room for growth, but I'm pleased with the way we competed for the full 90 minutes on the road and the manner in which we earned our first win."
Four Texans scored on Friday, three goals coming within the first 10 minutes of the second half, with a 1-0 match at the break becoming a 4-0 onslaught in the 54th minute.
Zoe Ballard opened the match with her first goal of the season in the 33rd minute. On a touch-pass assist by
Peyton Bryant, Ballard beat a sliding goalkeeper by putting the ball in the top right corner of the net. In the first half overall, Tarleton State outshot Prairie View A&M 9-2.
In the first minute of the second half (46th overall),
Zahra Friess scored her third goal of the season, assist to
Jessica Baires. Baires led a streaking Friess perfectly with the pass, and Friess beat the goalkeeper to the ball to get it past her in the bottom center.
Just three minutes later, Tarleton State made it 3-0,
Grace Berry scored her second goal of the season, and Baires earned her second assist of the match (sixth on the year). Berry rifled it in the top right corner of the net for the score.
The night's scoring ended in the 54th minute on a goal by Baires, assist to
Adelaide Wyrzynski. Baires showcased some razzle-dazzle to beat her defender and strike it into the top right corner of the goal. Baires ended the night with four points, earning a goal and two assists. It was her first goal of the season.
Overall, Tarleton State outshot Prairie View A&M 16-4, and blanked the Panthers in corner kicks 5-0. Baires had a match-high five shots, and had the tied-most shots on goal (two) along with Berry. Berry played all 90 minutes, along with Bryant, who has yet to miss a minute this season (720). Tarleton State goalkeeper
Rylie Bloomfield also played the entire match as she earned the shutout victory, her second shutout on the year. Bloomfield made four saves Friday.
The Texans are now 3-0 all-time against the Panthers, all shutout victories, with a 12-0 all-time scoring advantage. Two of the three matches have been in Prairie View. The Texans are 1-1-3 on the road overall this season.
Tarleton State will next play its first home match since August on Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. against Texas Southern. It will be Greek Life Night at the Tarleton State Soccer Complex.
