The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Dayton
Soccer earns hard-fought 2-1 victory over Dayton
10.28.2005 | Soccer
AUSTIN, Texas -- Priscilla Fite and Amy Burlingham scored second-half goals to lift Texas to a 2-1 victory over Dayton in front of 1,093 fans at Myers Stadium on Friday, Oct. 28.
While the Longhorns' (10-7-1) one-goal win over the Flyers (9-6-3) concluded the 2005 regular season for UT, it also gave Texas its 20th win in the last 22 home matches and earned the program its sixth consecutive double-digit win season.
Despite holding a 13-2 margin in shots during the opening half, the Longhorns went into halftime embroiled in a scoreless tie with Dayton. In the second period, Dayton stepped up its attack and had a couple of early chances to grab the lead, but UT goalkeeper Dianna Pfenninger (Sugar Land, Texas) and the Texas defense stood their ground and managed to keep the game scoreless. The Horns then had a player fouled on a play at the top of the Flyers' penalty area to set up a dangerous free kick opportunity. On the chance, Texas faked the attempt and had Caitlin Kennedy (Euless, Texas) play the ball to the far side for Fite (Irving, Texas), who drilled a shot into the upper left corner of the net for a 1-0 Longhorns lead at 58:04. Minutes later, the Flyers looked for the equalizer on a shot from 18 yards out off the foot of Jacueline Luehrs, but Pfenninger came up with a dynamic save to keep UT on top.
In the 71st minute, Fite played a long ball on the far side for freshman Erin Davis (Yardley, Penn.), who then delivered a low driven cross into the box that Burlingham (Costa Mesa, Calif.) headed inside the far post that Dayton keeper Niki Reed got a hand on, but the deflection went off the post and into the back of the net for a 2-0 Texas advantage. Now trailing by two, the Flyers continued to pressure the UT net by outshooting the Longhorns by an 11-6 count in the period and managed to cut the lead in half at 87:34 when Reed lofted a free kick into the box that Reba Sedlacek redirected with a header past Pfenninger. From there, the UT defense stood tall over the waning moments despite the late Dayton charge to preserve the 2-1 victory. While Pfenninger earned her eighth win of the year with a four-save performance, Reed, who made five stops on the evening, shouldered the loss for Dayton.
Paving the way for the Longhorns' offense, which tallied 19 totals shots on the night, was Fite, who matched a career-high with three points, the tandem of Ashley Foster (Athens, Ga.) and Burlingham, who each fired a match-best five shots, and Kennedy, who registered her 13th point in the last nine matches with an assist on Burlingham's second game-winning goal of the year. Dayton, meanwhile, had its attack led by Sedlacek, who netted the team's lone goal while amassing a team-best five shots.
Up next, the Longhorns head to the 2005 Big 12 Tournament at the Blossom Athletic Complex in San Antonio, Texas. Quarterfinal play begins on Wednesday, Nov. 2. Of note, Texas' seeding in the tourney field will be determined on Sunday, Oct. 30 following the completion of Big 12 play by all league schools.
