Box Score Corpus Christi, Texas – Goals from Northwestern State on either side of the halftime break were too much for the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's soccer team, as the Islanders lost 4-0 on Friday afternoon.
"Today just wasn't our day," head coach Shanna Caldwell said after the match. "Credit to Northwestern State. They played a great game today and finished their chances."
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A 2-0 score at halftime was not indicative of the flow of the game in the first half. The Islanders maintained the majority of possession, but were not able to convert attacks into goals.
"Overall, the first half, I thought we played well," added Caldwell. "We connected and had some good combinations. We just didn't find the final pass. I think we could have been cleaner on the ball and our movement sharper."
Hailey Sutton forced Lady Demons goalkeeper Alex Latham to make a diving save in the seventh minute with her header across the goal, which would prove to be the best opportunity on net for the Islanders in the first half.
Esdeina Gonzalez opened the scoring in the 11th minute. Cassandra Briscoe sent a curling ball into the back post where Gonzalez finished on her first touch.
The Lady Demons scored with less than a minute remaining in the first half. Briscoe beat Islanders goalkeeper Megan Delaney with a volley on a bouncing ball at the top of the box to put Northwestern State up 2-0 at the halftime break.
Hannah Joseph nearly found the back of the net just after the break with a shot in the 48th minute, but Latham managed to make the save to preserve the shutout.
Less than a minute later, Camila Ardila finished from the top of the six-yard box on a cross from Gonzalez. Briscoe picked up her second goal of the match in the 70th minute from the penalty spot, after the referee judged that Islanders defender Daniela Gonzalez challenge that made contact with the ball was a foul.
A&M-Corpus Christi sent players forward in the final 20 minutes of the match, but could not put a shot on goal. Kristin Kelley sent the final kick of the game curling wide of the post in the 89th.
Northwestern State outshot the Islanders 13-9, 9-5 in shots on goal. Delaney finished the match with five saves, while Sutton led the Islanders offensively with four shots, three on goal.
What's Next
The Islanders will travel to Central Arkansas for a 1 p.m. kickoff on Sunday. The Sugar Bears are 6-7-1, 3-2-1 in the Southland Conference before playing Houston Baptist tonight.
"But again, our focus shifts to take the positives and correct the controllable for Sunday. Our heads are staying up," Caldwell said.
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