Coming off a painful loss at now-#7 Arkansas where a 1-0 lead turned into a 2-1 loss in the final 13 minutes of the match, Vanderbilt was back at home Sunday to face the #24 Oklahoma Sooners. Vanderbilt was able to dominate the first half but only put 2 of their 8 shot attempts on target and failed to score. Possession was 66 to 34 in the Commodores’ favor, and the Sooners only tried 3 shots.
The second half was also all Vanderbilt with them outshooting Oklahoma 10 to 2. The difference was what the Commodores
did with their shots. Freshman Ellett Smith got the slightest of touches to a Vivian Akyirem in-swinging cross to open the scoring in the 60th minute. The cross might have nestled into the left corner of the net and was initially credited to Akyirem because the redirection was so slight. The next goal came quickly when Courtney Jones blocked an attempted clearance from an Olivia Stafford cross. The ball fell right to Maci Teater inside the 18-yard box, and Teater rifled it home.
Smith got involved again by turning creator. She got out to the right wing and floated a ball just deeper than the back post. Watts knocked it back across the goalkeeper first time to seal the 3-0 victory.
The statistics and scoreline matched in this one. It was a comprehensive beatdown of a Top 25 opponent. The way the Arkansas and Oklahoma matches went make the decision to get tricky with the tactics against LSU all the more puzzling.
Smith only had 3 minutes in one appearance coming into the match. She played 60 minutes and was pleasantly effective. The attack has been missing a little bite since Adysen Armenta and Reagan Pentz have been out. Their statuses are unknown at this time. Vivian Akyirem has also come alive lately and is really dangerous when she is aggressive on the dribble.
As a group, they need to keep building on the first 75 minutes against Arkansas and the entire match against Oklahoma. They are perfectly capable of pushing to a strong finish with only Mississippi State (#15), Tennessee (#5), and South Carolina (#12) ranked out of the final 7 contests. They do only have 3 home matches (Auburn, Missouri, and Tennessee) left.
The next opponent is Texas. The Longhorns are 2-7-1 (0-3-0). They opened the season with a 2-3 loss to Northwestern State and have only found wins against Long Beach State (2-1) and College of Charleston (3-1). They did also tie Arizona State. Their SEC schedule thus far has been at Missouri (1-3 L), home for Mississippi State (0-3 L), and at Alabama (3-4 L).
Texas has only scored 15 goals while allowing 24. Oddly enough, they have attempted 146 shots on the season while allowing opponents to attempt exactly the same number. The scoring disparity suggests the Longhorns are either shooting from distance because they cannot create more dangerous opportunities or are simply not talented in front of goal.
Only 6 Longhorns have scored this season. Ava McDonald is the most dangerous with 6 goals from 45 shot attempts. Amalia Villareal is behind her with 4 goals and 2 assists on 41 shots. The only other multi-goal scorer is Audrey Bryant with 2 goals and 2 assists. Olivia Ahern is the only Texas player with more than 2 assists, and she has provided the setup 5 times this season.
For comparison, Vanderbilt has had 10 players find the back of the net with Watts (6), Jones (3), and Stafford (3) leading the way. Teater, Armenta, and Soderman also have a pair each. Watts has only needed 36 shots to score her 6, too, so the efficiency is much higher. They do not have anyone with more than Reagan Pentz’s 4 assists. In fact, only Teater has multiple assists at 2. There are 10 players who have been the playmaker on a single goal.
In goal, Texas may be changing goalkeepers. Mateya Dessieux started the first 9 matches and played all 90 minutes in every one. She had a 2.22 Goals Against Average and a 0.667 save percentage while facing 60 shots. Kendall Williams started and played the entire match against Alabama, and did not fare any better with the 4 goals allowed and 0.556 save percentage.
Vanderbilt really should go into Austin and win tonight. They are much better than Texas. Defensively, the Commodores should be able to stifle a struggling Longhorn attack. In attack, even with a couple players out, they should be able to score at least a couple goals.
Tonight’s kickoff is at 6 PM Central time from the Mike A. Myers Stadium and Soccer Field on campus at UT-Austin. Streaming will be available on SEC Network+.
