The Aggies strategize to pull out another conference win.
Texas A&M soccer saw the return of multiple previously missing players to its lineup, which worked to its advantage.
Expectations were high for the Aggies after their 5-2-1 start to the 2021 season. Despite their strong start to the season, Texas A&M quickly fell into a four-game losing streak, starting with the loss to Pepperdine. After a strong 4-1 win against LSU on Oct. 7, A&M seeks to rekindle its winning record for the rest of the conference schedule.
After another win, this time at LSU, 6-6-1 Aggies hope to use their reunited offense to secure their win.
The maroon and white will take on a 9-2-2 Ole Miss, which has come off a two-game winning streak following their victory against the No. 19 South Carolina Gamecocks. The Aggies are 7-2-2 in their history against the Rebels, 3-1 in their matchups at Ellis Field.
Sophomore midfielder/forward Barbara Olivieri leads the Aggies’ comeback with her return to the field following an injury earlier in the season. The match against LSU marked the first time Olivieri, freshman forward Maile Hayes and freshman defender Mia Pante had played together in nine matches.
Olivieri scored two goals in the game, the first since her injury.
“It was amazing,” Olivieri said. “Especially since my first game back [Oct. 1] was sort of iffy on the injury. It felt great to be back and score two goals and make a big impact on the game.”
The newly reformed offense is backed by a strong defense with junior goalkeeper Kenna Caldwell, who has a 5-3-1 record for the season with one shutout.
A&M focused on building their defense during the LSU match, head coach G Guerrieri said.
“We came into this game putting some emphasis on cleaning up the things we do when we don’t have the ball,” Guerrieri said. “I thought Katie [Smith] and Karlina [Sample] did a great job of leading that as our captains, but Kenna was super there as far as giving support.”
With this newly strengthened team, the Aggies return to play against Ole Miss on Sunday, Oct. 10, at 3:00 p.m. at Ellis Field.