Texas soccer suffered its ninth loss of the season after another close game, this time falling to the Florida Gators by a narrow 2-1 score. The Longhorns were victims of the penalty shot, conceding both goals from the spot.
“There’s a lot of grind and battle in there,” head coach Ange Kelly said postgame. “We’re just fighting a lot of forces right now, but I’m proud of the way the team battled.”
Not much separated either team through the first 45 minutes of the matchup, with the Longhorns and the Gators headed into the locker room tied at halftime.
For the second straight game, the Longhorns’ opponents registered more shots in the first half, with the Gators totaling five shots; however, none really were much of a threat to redshirt freshman goalkeeper Kendell Williams. Williams comfortably saved the one shot on frame.
Texas threatened Florida’s goal just three times in the opening half of the game. Freshman forward Ava McDonald found a chance inside the box, spinning away from a defender. But with a block by Florida defenders, the goal-scoring opportunity fell wayward.
Senior midfielder Olivia Ahern managed to get the only shot on target in the first half for the Longhorns, but the chance went quietly after the shot was straight to Florida’s redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Paloma Peña.
Breaking the game’s deadlock would be the Gators. After a long video review, it was deemed that freshman midfielder Sadie Hoch committed a handball in the box, giving Florida a golden opportunity that Gators freshman forward Kai Tsakiris didn’t waste, converting from the spot to give Florida the lead.
This time, Texas responded. In her first career goal, redshirt freshman midfielder Molly MacMillan tied the game with a header to the back of the net off a cross from McDonald.
Not too long after, however, the Longhorns would find themselves down on the scoreboard once again. A foul in the box led to another video review and another Florida penalty kick. And once again, the Gators were able to convert from 12 yards out after placing the shot in the bottom left corner of the net, sealing the game.
The Longhorns will have just four games remaining on the season as they look to battle for a spot to qualify for the SEC Tournament. The first game of the stretch will have the Longhorns on the road to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks on Oct. 9 at 5 p.m. CT.
“Tough times don’t last, but great people do,” Kelly said. “And this group is a bunch of great people, and they’re building a lot of resilience, and I’m seeing the perseverance in them, so I’m proud of them for that.”
