Texas A&M soccer hosted Dallas Baptist and Sam Houston this afternoon, kicking off some Aggie ball by drawing 0-0 with the Patriots after a 60-minute skirmish and mirroring the empty score following a half-hour rumble with the Bearkats.
Sophomore forward Savannah Hutchins trailed ice onto the shamrock green despite the vanilla rays that brushed warmth over Ellis Field — cotton clouds drawn back to expose the blue expanse as the Aggies tangled with the Patriots.
It was an interpretive display, the desire to win written into her evasive strategy, sewn into the crease of her brows. Such a hankering for victory fixed her with a fierce focus and channeled into a blur of tricky steps.
“For me, when you overthink it, it just throws you off your game,” Hutchins said. “Don’t think about it. Take it, and just do what you know how to do.”
She would take the ball to the box time and time again. But no further.
With less than 15 minutes to play, the shriek of a low-bellied C-17 gripped the atmosphere and snapped it as it made its way to Olsen Field for the baseball flyover. The third-generation Globemaster split the air while its unique sound, nicknamed “The Moose,” stirred the stomachs of those caught under its winged shadow as it soared overhead. Eyes flickered away from the 15-ounce soccer ball to catch a glimpse of the smoky-gray beast stealing the sun’s brilliance and casting an inky shadow.
As the clouds thinned into pale stripes, senior defender Isabella Yakel and freshman D Riley Crooks played a game of keep away with an episode of consistent passes.
“It’s a matter of getting our feet underneath us,” coach G Guerrieri said. “Defensively, this week, we were significantly more comfortable and played well.”
A free kick for the Aggies put Yakel behind the play. Her hand went up, her cleats ate at the tailored earth, and her laces connected with the ball. It arched high and true, only to be collected into a snug embrace by sophomore goalkeeper Leslie Miller.
The match ended swiftly with a 0-0 score, and A&M hurried from the field to rest up before it took on Sam Houston.
“We have 17 new players,” Guerrieri said. “We knew we were going to get better from our first game together.”
The hour-long battle produced seven shot attempts from the Maroon and White, four of which were prevented by the Patriots— making for four DBU saves.
The 12th Man’s presence was sorely lacking in the prior match-up, but as the clock counted down to the Aggie’s 30-minute struggle with the Sam Houston Bearkats, maroon-boasting fans began trickling into the sun-soaked bleachers.
Hands shot up to gaping mouths when, within seconds of the starting kick-off, senior midfielder Anne Louthan dropped like a wheat stock in the heat of reaping. The game was ongoing until Louthan fully slumped to the field, clutching her head following a dizzy collision with the ball.
After being relocated to the sidelines, Yakel performed a free kick for the Aggies. Her steps were light, but her foot was heavy, driving into the bladder of the ball and sending it sailing just short of the goal.
The Barkats were starved, forcing A&M into denser defensive action to guard the sweet taste of the net. One orange and white jersey, sophomore defender Cadence Sanders, was a little too hungry, barreling into sophomore midfielder Kennedy Clark — sending her hard to the ground and handing A&M the ball.
But the free kick didn’t go to plan.
Clark, Yakel and junior F Leah Diaz formed an equilateral, the trio like an arrowhead staring down the ball in an attempt at fooling Sam Houston into not knowing who to block. As they closed in on the prize, however, A&M’s own game of misdirection took a twist.
Or a tip.
As Yakel and Diaz tap danced around the ball, teasing the army of Barkats walled-up to spare their goalie box, Clark tip-toed forward for contact. She missed her mark, doing no more than tipping it into play.
“They [were] trying a little bit of misdirection and a shot,” Guerrieri said. “But it all ble up.”
With less than a minute remaining, it was freshman F Emma Yolinsky who kept Sam Houston awake, blazing down the field like a bullet spinning through a barrel aimed at the neon pink beacon flashing in the mouth of the goal.
“She’s a dynamic force,” Guerrieri said. “She’s one we sure would have liked to have this past fall.”
As the temperature rose to 85 degrees Fahrenheit, Yolinsky continued drilling for the goal. Twice in the span of 30 seconds she found a pocket in Bearkat defense and dribbled fast towards Miller.
“She’s super skillful on the ball,” Guerrieri said. “Come fall, she’s going to be really, really good.”
The half-hour scrimmage ended scoreless. A&M hopes to learn from both its tussle with the Patriots and its brawl with the Bearkats as it approaches its next match-up against TCU at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium in Forth Worth on April 6.
