East Carolina University
Houston
Frey's Two Goals Propel ECU Past Houston
September 24, 2015 | Soccer
HOUSTON - Senior forward Kendall Frey scored two goals and senior goalkeeper Saundra Baron notched her sixth shutout of the season, as the East Carolina women's soccer team defeated Houston, 2-0, in its first American Athletic Conference match of the season Thursday evening at Carl Lewis Field.
The Pirates improved their record to 11-2 in the all-time series and have now won five-straight contests against the Cougars, outscoring the opposition by a combined score of 11-1 in those matchups.
"It's always great to win the first one, especially on the road," Head Coach Rob Donnenwirth said. "We finally scored off a corner kick, which makes a big impact. The second goal was a beautiful combination off a counter. That gave us a cushion."
The goals were Frey's second and third of the season as she finished the night with three shots, while junior striker Lana Spitler took a game-high five shots to lead East Carolina (6-4-1, 1-0-0 AAC). Baron made three saves in the match, while her six shutouts match her career-high and lead all American Conference goalkeepers.
In the 23rd minute, Spitler struck a low-lining corner kick from the far side of the field that was punched out to the top of the goal box by Houston (4-5-0, 0-1-0 AAC) goalkeeper Jordan Brown. Junior defender Autumn Berry was there to collect the ball and hit a bouncer into a cluster of players in front of the net, but it found the foot of Frey who touched a shot into the left side of the net to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead.
The score was Frey's second of the season and first since the 2-0 season-opening victory over George Mason on Aug. 21, while Berry was credited with her first assist of the season and fifth in her career.
East Carolina held an 8-5 overall shot advantage and a 3-0 edge in shots on goal, while both sides earned three corner kicks apiece in the first half.
ECU pounced on the opportunity to extend its lead on its very first possession of the second half, after the Cougars turned the ball over on a steal by Frey in the midfield. Frey pushed the ball ahead down the center of Houston's defense with two touches, before sending a pass to sophomore forward Courtney Taybron. Frey made a run through the heart of the back line, received a perfect pass from Taybron and fired a shot past the goalkeeper to give the Pirates a 2-0 advantage.
The goal marked Frey's second-career multi-goal performance and first since her two goals in the 2-1 upset victory in overtime at Memphis in the quarterfinals of last year's American Athletic Conference Championship. The Chester Springs, Pa., native now has 46-career points and 19-career goals, and sits just two points and a pair of goals away from moving into a tie with Kelly Gray (1998-2000) for fifth place on the all-time list in each category, respectively.
The Cougars earned some good looks at the ECU net with less than 20 minutes remaining, but did not earn their first shot on goal until the 77th minute of the match. That attempt, as well as two more in the subsequent five minutes, were all saved by Baron to preserve her second shutout in as many games.
Houston finished the night with a 15-13 lead in total shots and 7-5 margin in corner kicks, while the Pirates owned a 5-3 edge in shots on goal.
East Carolina will travel to Dallas, Texas on Sunday, Sept. 24 to take on SMU in its second league match. Opening kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
