Sports back at Texas State; Bobcats drop season opener in 2OT

SFA senior midfielder Destiny Davis broke away from the Texas State defense in the final seconds of Friday’s match at Bobcat Soccer Complex and sent a shot toward the hosts’ goal.

Freshman goalkeeper Beth Agee rejected it for her seventh save of the evening, but the ball popped back out and no maroon and gold defender came in to clear it. Ladyjack senior midfielder Katelyn Termini pounced on the rebound and sent a second shot that found the back of the net, claiming the golden goal for SFA with eight seconds left in double overtime and sealing the 2-1 win.

“We got ourselves caught into a little bit of a trap there of stepping when we shouldn't have and got caught in behind it,” Texas State head coach Kat Conner said. “Beth made a first save and it was a mad scramble in front of the goal there and somehow it popped out. And again, we didn't clear it and they put it in. You know, that's what you're supposed to do.”

The event was an important one for the Bobcats — not just the soccer program but for the athletics department itself. No games had taken place on campus since March 11, when the Sun Belt suspended all spring competitions due to safety concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, cutting short Texas State’s baseball, softball and men’s basketball seasons.

Those concerns led to the school’s fall football, volleyball and soccer schedules getting rearranged and, in some cases, pushed back. But Friday evening’s match turned a corner. Sports had returned to San Marcos.

The Bobcats looked sharp throughout the first half of the contest. The team didn’t allow a single shot on goal to SFA. About midway through the period, freshman midfielder Trinity Clark shoveled the ball to fellow freshman midfielder Emma Jones. The Hutto native launched a curling shot that found the right corner of the net for the first score of the game.

“Honestly, I don't even remember (the shot). I just remember taking a shot, looking up and just seeing it go in. It was really good, a lot of hard work,” Jones said. “(The match) was really fun. It was fast, I expected it. But we went out there and we played hard and the way we're supposed to.”

Texas State deployed six freshmen throughout the match — Agee, Jones, Trinity and midfielders Alana Clark, Haley Shaw and Wimberley Wright — totaling 462 combined minutes.

The group made a strong first impression its head coach.

“Emma Jones, what a standout. You know, that kid is gonna be special. She's coming on strong, she's a sponge, she soaks everything up. Great shot, bending shot to the back post, really did an awesome job,” Conner said. “I thought Haley Shaw came on, had some good minutes there and worked really hard to give us that plank play. I thought Trinity and Alana Clark really played well.”

The hosts’ tough defense wilted in the second half. The Ladyjacks took just two shots in the first half, then ramped it up to 12 in the second. Ladyjack senior defender Carli Arthurs scored in the 64th minute to tie the match up at 1-1. 

SFA had several more looks at goal during the period but Agee came up with multiple diving saves to send the match into overtime.

“Hey, what about Beth? You know, you talk about freshmen, holy cow,” Conner said. “That kid, she was phenomenal, she was phenomenal … I think we've got a good one back there and I think she's only gonna get better and better.”

Neither team found the back of the net during the first overtime period, extending the game for a final 10 minutes. The Bobcats got two good opportunities to score with two minutes left on the clock. One shot sailed over the outstretched arm of Ladyjack goalkeeper Madeline Talbot but ricocheted off the crossbar. Texas State senior midfielder Mackenzie Smith swooped in for the putback but her shot rolled right to Talbot.

The visitors scored just before the buzzer to claim the 2-1 victory.

“In the second half, you know, we got a little sloppy. We forced things forward when we didn't have to, maybe we should have kept it a little bit more and played the open player instead of just forcing it forward,” Conner said. “You know, SFA plays a direct style with a high black line. So we were kind of going for the gusto all the time. And we've got to learn that that kind of is a cat and mouse game and you can't do that constantly or it leaves you in a game that's really tough back and forth, especially when you're playing on 120 yards.”

A loss in the first game of the season isn’t the worst thing that could happen to Texas State, though. The program’s 2018 squad also lost its season opener in double overtime and went on to play in the Sun Belt Conference tournament final. Conner noted she was proud of her team despite the loss and said it would be a game the players could learn from.

The Bobcats will need to bounce back soon, though, as they host Houston Baptist on Sunday at 7 p.m. inside Bobcat Soccer Complex.

“(We need) grit, fighting till the end,” Jones said. “And just making sure that we're working on the little things, the principles and keeping those even when we're tired. But it was well-fought.”