Following a riveting upset of then-No. 5 Auburn on Sept. 26, Texas A&M soccer took a step backward as it fell to archrival No. 13 Texas in a 2-0 rout in Austin.
The Longhorns began their assault early on freshman goalkeeper Sydney Fuller when star freshman forward Amalia Villarreal charged into the A&M defense and delivered the winning goal in the eighth minute, dicing through four members of the Aggies’ backfield, virtually untouched in the process.
Not much time was given to react, as Texas’ attack would stay red hot in its 13-shot performance — as would Villarreal. She went on to register an assist to senior midfielder Ashlyn Miller, who dealt the insurance goal for the Longhorns at the 22nd-minute mark, which lessened the chances of an Aggie comeback quickly in the late afternoon matchup.
Fuller’s four saves came in as a commendable effort as shots continued to pepper in from the burnt orange offense following the two goals. Regardless, Fuller’s graft would not be enough with the absence of a fruitful push from the A&M offense, forcing the Aggies to remain searching for their first win over the Longhorns since 2019.
The Maroon and White could never establish the rhythm that carried them over the Tigers earlier in the week, despite outshooting the Horns 15-13. Credit for the A&M disarray should be extended to the strong Texas defense, which proved impenetrable for the Aggies through senior GK Mia Justus’ five saves and the combined effort to thwart six A&M corner kicks.
Junior Ms Sydney Becerra and Leah Pirro did their best to even the score following the intermission with six shots between the two of them, including three shots on goal. Further, the Aggies’ second half effort saw them have the 11-6 edge in shots over the Longhorns as they turned up the pressure following halftime. This all would be an exercise in futility, however, as A&M was shut out for the third time this season.
The loss puts the Aggies two victories behind their longtime foes in the Cotton Holdings Lone Star Showdown after falling to the Longhorns in volleyball on Sept. 27. With the top 14 teams in the conference moving on to the SEC Tournament, perhaps a rematch of A&M and UT would provide the opportunity to right the wrongs of the past for coach G Guerreiri’s squad.
A&M soccer now finds tied for seventh place in the SEC standings with contests against Ole Miss and Vanderbilt looming as the season draws to the midway mark. The team will have to regain the same caliber of defensive capability that has carried it over past opponents in five shutout victories if there is any hope of cracking the top 25 rankings once again.
The Aggies travel to Oxford, Mississippi to take on the 5-8-0 Rebels at 7 p.m. Friday.
