Aug. 29, 2008
Box Score
DENTON, Texas - A very strong North Texas team got a second-half goal from Sun Belt Preseason Player of the Year Kendall Juett to break a halftime tie and held on to beat the Lady Techsters 2-1 on Friday night at the Mean Green Soccer Complex.
Despite the outcome, Tech head coach Kevin Sherry was very encouraged by the effort and hard-nosed play of his team.
"It was very, very good," Sherry said. "Strong effort against a powerhouse; our kids were big underdogs. You look at their banners, conference titles, NCAA Tournament appearances...you look at all that, and we put up a great fight.
"It came down to us making two mistakes, and we got punished for it. They made two mistakes, and we punished them once. At this level, that's the difference."
Tech (0-1) dropped its season opener for the fourth time in five seasons, but managed to score for only the second time in a season opener. It showed a marked improvement from the 2007 season when the Techsters did not find the back of the net until their fourth game.
"We took great heart because this is a huge improvement over last year," Sherry said. "This time last year, we would have lost this game 10-0. On the road, all these things against us...I'm very proud of the way we played."
North Texas (1-0) got on the board first when a scramble in front of the net led to an open goal, and Kelsey Perlman got a foot on it for the Mean Green to give them a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.
The Lady Techsters would answer back just a few minutes later. Scotti Culton found fellow freshman Olivia Lukasewich down the left side, who then lofted a half-shot/half-cross toward the net. The Mean Green keeper got a finger on the ball, but sophomore Kiva Gresham was there to poke it in for the equalizer at 22:11. The goal was the fifth of Gresham's short career, moving her into a three-way tie for fourth all-time at Tech with Kodi Bethay and current teammate Kat McCullough.
In the 56th minute, however, the Mean Green would regain the lead when Juett took a pass from Perlman and had a one-on-one breakway from about 50 yards out, beating the keeper for the game-winner.
Freshman Jean Bernard, a native of Mandeville, made her first start in goal and had six saves. In all, eight freshman saw action for the Techsters tonight. Bernard, Rachel King, Amy Quintana, Kristen Sevier and Scotti Culton earned starts while Chelsea White, Chelsea Wuesthoff and Olivia Lukasewich saw time off the bench.
"Obviously, we're disappointed to lose," Sherry said. "But this bodes well for the season. Our kids played great; our seniors put in a great effort and set a very good example for our freshmen. We crossed a big bridge tonight."
The Techsters will stay in Denton through Sunday when they will face Texas Woman's University. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at the TWU Soccer Field.
