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The good times continued to roll at John Crain Field on Thursday night for Oklahoma Sooners Soccer. They continued their electric start to the season with an 8-1 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
The eight goals tied a school record for goals in a game, which has been done four times in program history. The last time was in a win over UTSA back in September of 2015.
But it wasn’t without a little early drama.
UAPB got the scoring going in the first five minutes of the game when Amiya Callicut scored on a long free kick that just went over the outstretched hand of goalkeeper Olivia Ramey.
Oklahoma allowed only one shot on goal for the remainder of the game.
It was all Sooners from the 4:22 mark of the game. Dani Wolfe took control with a pair of goals eight minutes apart on a couple of beautiful touches at the top of the box. Sister Andi Wolfe got in on the action to make it 3-1 with a goal 22 minutes into the game.
Morganne Ekelbarner scored to make it 4-1 under four minutes later, and if it wasn’t clear by then, the Sooners were in complete control of the game.
𝙍𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙤𝙩
3-0, best start since 2009
Tie school record for goals (8)
Set school record for points (23)» https://t.co/cIUKkUImvi | #BoomerSooner
pic.twitter.com/Fwa7B06Kc2— Oklahoma Soccer (@OU_WSoccer) August 25, 2023
In the second half, it was all Sooners again. Their relentless pressure on the ball kept Arkansas-Pine Bluff from getting comfortable in possession. Not satisfied with the 4-1 lead, Oklahoma kept up their offensive attack.
Hadley Murrell scored two goals in 30 seconds around the 60-minute mark, and Keller Matise notched her first goal of the season to make it 7-1. Closing the scoring was Marianne Baltmanis, who buried a penalty kick for her first goal as a Sooners to give Oklahoma the 8-1 lead.
Leading scorer Emma Hawkins was kept out of the net for the first time this season. However, she was incredibly active all night. She finished with an assist on a beautiful backheel touch and had seven shots on goal in the win.
“We played really well,” head coach Matt Mott said after the win. “We continued to attack the whole game. That’s what we talked about before the game. To go at them, go at them and use that pressure, then we turned them over, and we got some good goals.”
That attacking pace was relentless from the Sooners. Though they surrendered the opening score, they quickly tilted the pitch in their favor and kept the pressure on the Golden Lions.
The Sooners have now scored 18 goals in their first three games of the season. Those 18 goals are the most in program history through three games according to SoonerSports.com. They’re outscoring opponents 18-3 on the season.
As impressive as the offensive outburst was, the defensive showing was equally impressive. Coming into the match, Arkansas-Pine Bluff had scored 16 goals in their first two contests. Despite the early goal, the Oklahoma Sooners’ defense was sound throughout, rarely allowing anything threatening in their end of the field.
Continued to 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙠
Coach Mott and Dani Wolfe recap the big W!
pic.twitter.com/eFosL4ausp— Oklahoma Soccer (@OU_WSoccer) August 25, 2023
The Sooners now go on the road to take on Samford (1-1-1). The Bulldogs are coming off a pair of impressive performances. They beat Jacksonville State 6-0 on Thursday night and picked up a 0-0 tie in their season opener against Auburn a week ago.
The Sooners will play Samford Sunday at 1 pm CT, and that match can be seen on ESPN+.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.
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By: John Williams
Title: Oklahoma Soccer has historic night in 8-1 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Sourced From: soonerswire.usatoday.com/2023/08/25/oklahoma-sooners-soccer-arkansas-pine-bluff-matt-mott-dani-wolfe-emma-hawkins-8-1/
Published Date: Fri, 25 Aug 2023 13:28:40 +0000
