HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Adverse weather descended upon most of the country and the Southland Conference region was not immune to that. Freezing temperatures have wreaked havoc on the area, altering many Northwestern State athletic events.
The NSU women's soccer team was able to play without any hitches to its plans. And the Lady Demons' play on the pitch didn't have many hitches, either.
Northwestern State continued with its winning ways, toppling Sam Houston 1-0 Friday night in Huntsville, Texas. The victory improved NSU to 3-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play.
"I was really pleased with the effort and how we grew into things," said co-head coach Jess Jobe. "We had to catch up to the game a little bit, but we are really pleased. We dug in a little bit at halftime, and there were some things we needed to tie together, and they did that really well. It was a fantastic second half."
The game was a stalemate for the first 79 minutes. However, Northwestern State owned the second half, controlling the ball in its attacking half for most of the final 45 minutes.
Freshman Delaney Wells provided the breakthrough goal, the first score of her career. She cleaned up a loose ball in front of the net with the assist going to junior Kiara Padilla.
"(Delaney) was adding a lot for us in that first half, and we stuck with her to play the second half," Jobe said. "She was one of the players buzzing around, and very active in those moments when the ball was going toward the net. She was ready for that opportunity to pop up and took advantage."
As stated, NSU got after Sam Houston in the attacking third. Northwestern State earned eight corners on the night and fired 17 shots, nine of which were on target.
Sophomore Olivia Draguicevich led that charge with six shots, half of which were on frame. Fellow sophomore Samantha Hanking also had three of her five shots on target, while senior Alexis Weaver and junior Natalee Henry fired two shots apiece.
Sam Houston wasn't devoid of shots, either. The Bearkats took nine shots, eight in the opening 45 minutes, as they controlled the game early.
"Give credit to Sam Houston," Jobe said. "In the opening minutes of play, they really made things very difficult for us. They really, honestly, had the better of us early on and brought some intensity."
NSU goaltender Acelya Aydogmus' was up to every Sam Houston shot, however. She turned away three shots in the first half and another in the second half to record her second straight shutout.
"Ace, once again, in some big moments, just calm and composed," Jobe said. "It's so meaningful to have a goalkeeper behind us that we can trust."
Northwestern State has now won three in a row over the Bearkats. NSU has also claimed a win in nine of its last 10 contests, dating back to last season.
Northwestern State will remain on the road, traveling to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Friday at 7 p.m. NSU will then play at Houston Baptist on Feb. 21 before opening its home slate Feb. 26 against Nicholls.
