RUSTON – The Louisiana Tech Soccer team had a one-goal advantage at halftime, but Little Rock tallied two goals early in the second half to come away with the 2-1 decision on Thursday night in front of 153 fans at Robert Mack Caruthers Field.
 
LA Tech (3-5-1) controlled much of the possession in the match while holding also a 15-9 shot advantage and a 7-3 corner kick edge, but Little Rock (3-1-4) was the recipient of an own goal that ended up being the game winner for the Trojans.
 
The shots were limited on both sides through much of the first half, but the Bulldogs earned their first penalty kick of the season in the 38th minute when Kalli Matlock was taken down in the box.  Josie Studer, making her return to the pitch after missing two matches, had her PK shot saved, but Tomoyo Kuroyanagi took care of the deflection by firing a shot inside the far post.
 
Little Rock would equalize though in the 53rd minute when a cross into the box was not cleared and Karina De Paoli drove the ball into the back of the net to tie things up.
 
About five minutes later, the Bulldogs tried to clear the ball out of the 6-yard box, but the ball went off a fellow teammate and went backwards to give the Trojans a 2-1 lead.
 
LA Tech had four shots on goal for the remainder of fulltime and had two late free kicks in the final minute, but were not able to equalize themselves.
 
QUOTABLES
Head coach Steve Voltz
 
Thoughts on the match…
"It is the same story, different day.  We play well, we create chances, but we do not reward ourselves.  There is no other way to say it.  On top of it, we punish ourselves with an own goal.  It was two bad mistakes defensively that led to their goals.  Here we are losing a game that we dominated possession and shot total."
 
On the defensive mistakes…
"We had the cross cover, but we did not get the clearance.  Little Rock took advantage.  On the other clearance, we hit it off one of our own players and the ball took a weird bounce into the back of the net.  It is not a breakdown, it can just be a cruel sport where the ball does not bounce your way."
 
On starting conference play…
"I have no idea what to expect.  We have some tough decisions regarding travel roster.  At the end of the day, we are starting to get healthier.  We gave a couple of new players a run.  We have some options now.  When we have opportunities, we have to find a way to reward ourselves."
 
NOTABLES

• After the loss, LA Tech now leads the all-time series, 4-3-0. The Bulldogs have now dropped two in a row to the Trojans.
• LA Tech had its six-match home unbeaten streak snapped.
• The Bulldogs took their first penalty kick of the season.
• Tomoyo Kuroyanagi scored her first goal of the season and the fourth of her career.

UP NEXT
LA Tech opens Conference USA play on Sunday, Sept. 17 at New Mexico State.  Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. CT and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
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