No. 19 Tech closes out road slate at Cincinnati Sunday

CINCINNATI – Fresh off a gritty 1-0 win at West Virginia on Thursday night, No. 19 Texas Tech Soccer seeks its third straight win overall and fifth straight road win on Sunday afternoon when they face Cincinnati. First touch from Gettler Stadium is set for 1 p.m. (ET)/Noon (CT).

Tied with TCU atop the Big 12 tables, the Red Raiders enter Sunday's match riding a 26-match (21-0-6) unbeaten streak and a 15-match (10-0-5) road streak. The Red Raiders lost road loss was the 2021 finale at WVU, while the last Big 12 loss was to Texas in the 2022 season.

With just two matches remaining in the regular season, the Red Raiders have already clinched a top-four seed in the 2024 Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Championships and with a victory can clinch a top-two seed.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
MATCHUP: Texas Tech (12-2-2, 7-0-2 Big 12) at Cincinnati (6-7-3, 2-5-2 Big 12)
DATE: Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024
TIME: 1 p.m. (ET)/Noon (CT)
LOCATION: Cincinnati, Ohio (Gettler Stadium)

LAST TIME OUT:
A Peyton Parsons first half penalty kick, and a diving save on a PK from goalkeeper Faith Nguyen, pushed No. 19 Texas Tech past West Virginia, 1-0 Thursday night at Dick Dlesk Stadium.

Seeking its seventh win in the last eight games and looking to extend its unbeaten streak to 12 straight, Texas Tech (12-2-2, 7-0-2 Big 12) got the clutch moments from Parsons and Nguyen to close out the programs first win in Morgantown since 2019.

After a tight defensive battle started to slowly open before halftime, the Red Raiders tallied the first shot on goal of the match in the 26th minute when Kaitlyn Giametta ripped a low shot that was smothered by WVU (10-4-2, 6-2-1 Big 12) goalkeeper Mackenzie Smith.

The Mountaineers tallied their first shot on goal with 18 seconds left in the 36th-minute, when Jordyn Wilson shot ripped a shot that Nguyen was able to make a diving save on.

Neither side was able to tally a dangerous chance until the match flipped into the 41st minute and Elise Anderson delivered a strong ball to the back post that found Parsons.

The forward took one touch and tried to rip a shot, but a Mountaineer defender blocked the attempt.

WVU was able to clear the ball out to midfield, but at midfield, Tech was able to penetrate the Mountaineer box moments later when Alana Harry slotted a ball that found Taylor Zdrojewski deep in the WVU 18-yard box.

Zdrojewski took one touch and tried to keep advancing toward the Mountaineer goal, but the sophomore was tripped up for a penalty kick.

Stepping to the spot, Parsons rolled a perfect ball into the far side of the net and past Smith who dove to her right.

Armed with a 1-0 lead, the Red Raiders were able to close out the final four minutes of the half to take the match to the break.

Neither side had a strong scoring opportunity until midway through the 59th minute when a foul on Zdrojewski awarded a free kick to the Red Raiders from about 25-yards out. Seeking another brace, Parsons delivered a strong rising shot that kept rising toward the top of the goal before being punched high by Smith.

Just a few moments later, it was WVUs turn to earn a PK, as Dilary Heredia-Beltran was fouled by Macy Blackburn. Stepping to the spot, Lily McCarthy drilled a low shot that Nguyen was able to dive to her right and stop.

Following the PK, the Red Raiders continued to stifle the WVU offense, as over the final 23 minutes and change of the match, the Red Raider backline allowed just one blocked shot.

QUICK KICKS:
• Unbeaten in 12 straight matches (10-0-2) and winners of seven of eight, Texas Tech closes its final and most important road trip when they head to Cincinnati (Sunday).

• Sitting tied atop the Big 12 table with TCU at 23 points, the Red Raiders seek to win the Big 12 regular season title for the second straight season.

• The Red Raiders have not trailed in a match since the Aug. 25 match against Utah State, a span of 12 matches or 1080 minutes. The Red Raiders since the 2-0 loss at Utah State, have outscored opponents 27-3.

• Tech's 12-match unbeaten streak coincides with the return of Macy Blackburn. Blackburn who made her 2024 debut at Utah State was limited to just 32 minutes in that game.

• The last two seasons Tech is 22-0-5 when Blackburn plays at least 40 minutes. After scoring just once through the first nine matches of the season and scoring just twice through the first 12 matches, Ashleigh Williams has now scored in three of her last four matches.

• Williams scored the game winner against Baylor and scored the go-ahead goal in last Thursday's 1-1 draw, before adding a PK in last Sunday's 2-0 win over Iowa State.
For her efforts this week, Williams was named the Big 12s Co-Offensive Player of the Week, as the forward earned her fifth all-time weekly honor.

• Williams' honor marks the sixth time that a Red Raider earned a Big 12 weekly honor this season.

• The draw last Thursday ended a pair of impressive streaks as the Red Raiders saw a nation-leading 19-match home winning streak snapped and a 24-match winning streak when Williams scored snapped.

• Tech was previously a perfect 24-0-0 when Williams scored in a game. With Sunday's goal however, the Red Raider did improve to 25-0-1 all-time when Williams finds the back of the net in a match.

• The Red Raiders enter the weekend riding three different impressive streaks. The first streak is a 26-match Big 12 unbeaten streak that dates back over two seasons. The Red Raiders are 21-0-5 in their last 26 Big 12 conference matches. That streak is the longest in the Power Four and the third-longest in the country trailing just Xavier (35) and St. Louis (27).

• The second streak that Tech will take into Thursday's matchup at West Virginia is an 12-match unbeaten streak overall. The Red Raiders 12-match unbeaten streak is tied for the longest streak in the country with: Western Carolina (10-0-2), South Dakota State (10-0-2), and Notre Dame (10-0-2) all have similar 12-match unbeaten streaks.

• Tech's third and final streak is a 15-match (10-0-5) unbeaten streak on the road in Big 12 Conference play. That stretch spans the entirety of the 2022 season, the whole 2023 season and the 2024 season. So far this season in Big 12 play, Tech is 4-0-1 on the road.

UP NEXT:
The Red Raider close the regular season on Friday night (Oct. 25) against BYU. First touch from the John Walker Soccer Complex is set for 7 p.m.

No. 19 Tech closes out road slate at Cincinnati Sunday

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Players Mentioned

Elise Anderson

Macy Blackburn

Kaitlyn Giametta

Alana Harry

Faith Nguyen

Peyton Parsons

Ashleigh Williams

Taylor Zdrojewski