OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University survived a late push by Lubbock Christian (Texas) to earn the 3-2 win Saturday at Stars Field and advance to the Sooner Athletic Conference women's soccer tournament semifinals.
The top-seeded and 15th-ranked Stars (17-2) will face Southern Nazarene on Tuesday at Stars Field.
Statistically, OCU outshot the Lady Chaparrals by a 23-6 tally, with the 13-4 shot-on-goal advantage favoring the Stars. Malin Andersson, a senior from Huskvarna, Sweden, led OCU with six shots, and earned three points in the match, scoring a goal and assisting on another.
OCU coach Brian Harvey had high praise for the play of Niku Bayatfar, a sophomore from Ada, Okla., who took a spot in the starting lineup for just the second time this season.
“I felt that Niku came in for Abby Lloyd and played very well actually,” Harvey said. “We got a really good defensive game out of her.”
Lubbock Christian struck first in the match. Amber Brown-Longoria received a pass through the OCU defense from Alyssa Deutsch in the 26th minute to give the Lady Chaps the 1-0 lead.
Five minutes later, OCU had an answering goal when Meghan McMahon, a freshman from Oklahoma City, passed the ball to Andersson at midfield. Andersson took the ball, beat the defense and booted in the tying goal.
The go-ahead goal for the Stars came in the 32nd minute just 39 seconds after the McMahon score. Andersson had a shot attempted saved by Lady Chaps goalkeeper Lacy Burress. Alex Miley, a senior from Edmond, Okla., received the rebound off Burress and netted the Stars' second goal of the match. Andersson tallied her 18th assist on the season, keeping her tied for third in the NAIA for total assists this season.
The score at halftime was 3-1 in favor of the Stars after Sheridan Horner, a sophomore from Choctaw, Okla., found the net in the 42nd minute of the match. In a similar fashion to the Stars' previous goal, Burress stopped two shot attempts by Andersson. The ball came back into play, and Horner booted in her fourth score of the season.
Even with the advantage, Harvey willed the Stars to work harder in the second half to close out the match.
“We got outworked in the first half, and I don't really like it when we got outworked,” Harvey said. “We've got talent, but talent won't show if you're not prepared to match the work rate.”
The second half saw OCU's hard work translate into a match played on their own side of the field for much of the period. The Stars' offense remained diligent in maintaining control of the ball, and the defense only allowed the Lady Chaps brief glimpses at their own side of the pitch.
In the 79th minute, Lubbock Christian cut the Stars' lead to 3-2 when Brown-Longoria recorded her second goal of the match. However, the Lady Chaps could not manage an equalizing goal. Lubbock Christian's inaugural soccer season wound down.
“It's in the back of the girls' mind that they've already qualified for the NAIA Championships Opening Round, so they are really playing for their pride,” Harvey said. “I'm thinking as long as we maintain the home field advantage, we'll play solidly.”
Boxscore
Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament
WOMEN
Saturday's Results
Quarterfinals
Oklahoma City 3, Lubbock Christian (Texas) 2
Southern Nazarene 2, Rogers State 1
Mid-America Christian 2, Oklahoma Baptist 0
John Brown (Ark.) 2, USAO 1, 2OT
Tuesday's Matches
Semifinals
Mid-America Christian at John Brown, 2 p.m.
Southern Nazarene at Oklahoma City, 5 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 12
Championship
At highest remaining seed
