The No. 18 Texas A&M soccer team beat the University of Texas–El Paso Miners by a score of 4-1 behind a strong team effort for its third straight victory.
The Aggies faced in-state opponent UTEP on Sunday, Sept. 5 at Ellis Field. Including this game, A&M has won its last 13 games at home, a streak dating back to late 2019. The Aggies stand at 3-2 on the season, and the Miners fall to 1-5.
Three different Aggies scored in the game, marking an impressive variety of names in A&M’s goal column. In the season so far, nine different players have combined for thirteen goals.
“It’s a team that loves each other,” A&M coach G Guerrieri said. “They’re OK with sharing the ball because they know they’re sharing the ball with great players.”
The game opened up with A&M dominating both possession and the stat sheet, yet the Aggies found themselves tied 1-1 at the half. Although the scoreboard read a tied match, A&M had nine attempted shots in the first half compared to UTEP’s two.
Sophomore midfielder Taylor Pounds, assisted by freshman defender Mia Pante, struck one into the top-middle of the net right over the goalkeeper’s outstretched arms in the 12th minute to put the Aggies up early. This goal was Pounds’s second of the season.
In the 40th minute, UTEP found itself on a nice counter attack on the left side of the pitch after a goal kick. Junior forward Jojo Ngongo, soon after being subbed in, struck a goal for the Miners on the team’s first, and only, shot on goal of the half. Junior forward Ayana Noel and freshman goalie Luisa Palmen were both accredited with the assist.
At the turn of the half, not much changed except for the efficiency at which the Aggies scored. A&M once more out-shot UTEP, this time by a count of 12-4. However, the Aggies scored on three of their shots while the Miners failed to find the back of the net.
Sophomore midfielder Kate Colvin scored quickly to put the Aggies up 2-1 in the 49th minute after being assisted by Pante and senior defender Macie Kolb. This was Colvin’s third goal in as many games, the highest on the team.
“I got a great ball from Macie Kolb, so I think it has a lot to do with the flow of the game,” Colvin said. “The past two games, after, I definitely wanted to make it three for three.”
Freshman forward Maile Hayes later scored in the 60th minute, assisted by freshman forward Natalie Abel, and again in the 85th minute, assisted by freshman defender Macy Matula. This secured the game for the Aggies with a 4-1 win. Hayes became the ninth member of the A&M team to score so far this season.
“It shows that our team is very hard-working, and we have a lot of depth this year,” Hayes said. “We’re really excited to continue this season and go into SEC play, and all of us will continue to work hard.”
The Aggies will play again on a rare Wednesday night game against the Southern University Jaguars. The two teams face off in College Station on Sept. 8 at Ellis Field at 7 p.m.
