Soccer Outlasts Arkansas On The Road

NORMAN, Okla. The University of Oklahoma soccer team (2-0-2), playing its first road game of 2004 in Fayetteville, Ark., came away with a 2-1 win over Arkansas on Sunday for its second consecutive victory.

After a slow first half, the Sooners rebounded to score two second half goals, one from freshman Allyson Kucera and the other from sophomore Andrea Hurley, to defeat the Lady Razorbacks for the sixth consecutive time.

“Being the first road game and the first team that we have played with a stacked defense, I am glad to come away with a win,” said Oklahoma head coach Randy Evans. “We had to make some adjustments to break through their defense, so this was a learning experience. This team continues to improve and now they have a road game under their belts.”

Box Score | 2004 Cumulative Statistics

Arkansas (2-2-0) held OU scoreless in the first half two days after the Sooners scored five goals against TCU. The momentum was clearly in OU's favor to start off the second half, as it pressured the opposition with a flurry of shots. That pressure eventually broke through the Arkansas defense 3:36 into the second session.

For the third time this season on a corner kick, the dynamic freshman duo of Shana All and Kucera hooked up for the score to beat Arkansas goalkeeper Carrie Dillsaver. Junior Jenny Jones was also credited for her first assist of 2004 on the play. The score resulted in All's team-leading fourth assist this season and Kucera's team-leading third goal of the young season.

OU led Arkansas in corner kicks, 5-2. It was the third straight game that the Sooners held the advantage in that category.

“We have become a dangerous team on corners and set pieces” said Evans. “They all do a great job out there and that was something we were looking towards against a compact defense. Today we knew we had to use our athleticism to take the lead.”

Senior captain Catherine Wade, fresh off her first shutout of 2004 on Friday against TCU, started Sunday's contest in goal for OU and made three saves in the first half before being relieved by freshman keeper Jennifer Nichols at halftime.

With just under 15 minutes left in the contest, the Lady Razorbacks knotted the game at one when Katie Stauffer recorded her first goal of the season that got past Nichols off a free kick. The OU offense quickly countered less than a minute later with Hurley's goal, assisted by junior Becky Nelson and sophomore Savannah Scott. Hurley's first collegiate goal at the 75:58 mark could not have come at a better time as it proved to be the game winner. The double assist, a solid display of passing between Nelson and Scott, set up Hurley for the one-on-one that she used to put away the game.

The Sooner defense was able to hold off Arkansas to preserve the victory and, as a team, OU narrowed the shot margin with 10 second half shots compared to the opposition's eight in the second session. Although the stat sheet had Arkansas leading the overall shot count (13-12), OU made up for it where it counted most, posting 10 shots on goal to Arkansas' seven. Nelson, junior captain Lauren MacIver and freshman Tenesha Duncan led OU in shots with two each and the trio combined for five shots on goal.

Nichols improved to 1-0-2 after stopping three Arkansas shots while her counterpart Dillsaver made eight saves.

OU is undefeated in the six all-time meetings with the Lady Razorbacks. The Sooners have outscored Arkansas 16-4 in the six contests. In addition, Sunday's win gives the Sooners one of their best starts after four games since 2002. That squad started off the season with six consecutive victories and in 2001, OU started 3-1.

The road trips continue for OU next week as it will be away from Norman for eight of its next nine games. OU will take a trip north to Tulsa to take on Tulsa and Oral Roberts before heading to Tempe, Ariz., for two games and then making four stops in Texas (Austin, College Station, Waco and Lubbock). The one home game during the span will come on Sept. 24 when OU opens Big 12 play with Missouri.

Sooner Notes

OU is a combined 9-3 all-time against its next two opponents, Oral Roberts and Tulsa. The Sooners will square off with ORU on Friday, Sept. 10, at 7 p.m. at the ORU Soccer Complex in the first game of the Oklahoma Shootout. On Sunday, OU will take on Tulsa at Hurricane Soccer & Track Stadium at 7 p.m. In last year's shootout in Norman, OU defeated both schools by a score of 2-0.

Freshman Shana All recorded her fourth assist of the season on Sunday. All entered Friday'sgame tied for the Big 12 lead in that category. All four of her assists have come off of corner kicks, three of those scored by Allyson Kucera.

Junior Lauren MacIver led OU in shots in her first two seasons and is off to a roaring start in 2004. The captain has ripped 24 shots in four games with two goals and 11 shots on goal. As a freshman, MacIver recorded 61 shots and followed that up with 69 last season.

After struggling against the opposition in 2003 in the corner kick category, the 2004 Sooners have taken advantage of the set plays from the corners, scoring four goals in four games off of headers. In four games this season, the Sooners have produced 24 corner kicks compared to nine a year ago after four contests. Opponents in 2004 trail OU in the category 24-11.

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