University of Toledo
Pittsburgh
Rockets Fall to Pittsburgh 1-0 on Friday Night
8/30/2014 12:35:00 AM | Women's Soccer
TOLEDO, OH - Toledo suffered a 1-0 setback against Pittsburgh on Friday night at Scott Park. With the loss, UT falls to 1-1-1 in the young 2014 season.
Despite the loss, the Rockets controlled most of the match and finished with a 17-8 shots advantage and a 5-3 edge in corner kicks.
“I thought we got more quality chances today than we did in our last game,” UT head coach Brad Evans said. “Then again, finishing is finishing and we haven't finished our chances. We missed our chances in the first half, we knew it could potentially hurt and it did at the end. I think we will improve at that as we move along.”
The lone goal came on a freshman connection for Pittsburgh as Shaina Ashouri found Taylor Pryce with a cross from the left side in the 30th minute of play. Pryce was able to flick the ball with her head just out of reach for Toledo junior keeper Sam Tiongson.
“I was making a run to the back and just didn't get there quick enough,” senior defender Alexis Tice said. “Our keeper came out but neither of us was able to make a play and a goal was the result.”
Freshman forward Sophie Pohl led the UT attack with four shots while redshirt freshman Isabella Echeverri was close behind with three blasts of her own. Pryce led Pittsburgh with six shots while no other Panther registered more than one.
The Rockets attack wasted no time and fired three shots in the first five minutes of play. Their best chance came on a pass from junior captain Megan Connor to an open Hannah Scafaria but the redshirt freshman's shot sailed just over the crossbar.
Toledo continued to apply the pressure in the first half and nearly had a score on their first corner kick of the game. Senior captain Kirsten Catloth launched a ball into the box which found the head of Tice but the senior defender flicked it too high.
After the Pitt goal, Toledo nearly responded as freshman forward Bethany Thomas found free space in the box and gave it blast but the Panther keeper made a nice diving save to keep the Rockets trailing.
“We are creating opportunities but we just aren't finishing,” Evans said. “Once we finish, I will say that we are producing. This is a step in the right direction though.”
The second half was more of the same story for UT as the offense continued to onslaught the Pittsburgh defense with crosses and quality opportunities.
Their best and final chance in the second half came in the 89th minute. Nifty footwork from Connor gave her enough space to find Pohl on the near post but the header fired wide of the net.
“We had a lot of good looks but we would just bash them over or wide,” Thomas said. “We just need to stay composed on the ball. Once we do that we are going to beat good teams like Pittsburgh all day.”
The Rockets will have their opportunity to finish their chances on Sunday as Xavier visits Scott Park for a 1:05 p.m. kickoff. The game will be carried live on BCSN.
