Texas offense surges early, defense closes out 2-2 draw with No. 8 Tennessee

Texas proved to be a contender in the Southeastern Conference Friday night against No. 8 Tennessee. The Longhorns’ offense exploded for two goals in 47 seconds in the first half, and the defense dug in to prevent a game-winning goal after playing down a player in the final 20 minutes. The result was a 2-2 tie in Texas’ first SEC home game under head coach Margueritte Bates.

Tennessee struck first. A free kick awarded in the 10th minute led to a goal off the left foot of fifth-year forward Shae O’Rourke, but the Longhorns kept their head up and bounced back with a slew of offensive attacks. One in the 14th minute led by sophomore forward Ava McDonald that found the back of the net, but was called back for an earlier foul. 

This missed chance only fueled the Longhorns, who kept the pressure on. McDonald remained a centerpiece for each Texas attack, creating chances and shots on goal. 

One such chance led to a corner kick, and a weak clearing from Tennessee’s defense allowed another shot from sophomore forward Ashlynn Anderson, which was quickly rebounded and scored by sophomore defender Mya Brandon, evening the score 1-1.

“It gives me a lot of confidence, I (saw) the ball come out, and I knew that was my chance,” Brandon said after the game.

The Longhorns’ offense wasn’t finished. Less than a minute later, McDonald found Anderson in the box, who finished it for her first goal in a Longhorn uniform, putting Texas ahead 2-1. 

The rest of the half evened out, and possession of the ball was shared between the two sides. 

Coming out of the break, Tennessee’s offense came back firing. With three shots in the next 15 minutes, momentum began to swing back towards the Volunteers, and the burnt orange back line struggled to keep up with the offensive pressure.

In the 67th minute, Texas’ defense finally broke, when a cross from O’Rourke found the head of fifth year forward Kylee Simmons for the Volunteer score to put the teams even, now 2-2. 

The Longhorns found more bad luck a minute later, when a shove in the box from fifth year defensive player EmJ Witt got her called for a red card, and she was sent out of the game. Now with just 10 players on the field to Tennessee’s 11, Texas needed to dig in to hold on.

The Longhorns were forced to move into a defensive style of play, booting the ball away at every chance and bringing more players back to defend. The defense, led by senior goalkeeper Bayliss Flynn, held strong through relentless Tennessee attacks, and Flynn tallied three saves by the end of the game.

There was some back and forth pressure for both sides in the final minutes, but chances were thwarted, and neither team secured the game-winning goal. Texas, in a game that started with strong offense and ended with stronger defense, eventually ended in a 2-2 tie against No. 8 Tennessee at home. 

“I was proud of the group, in that they stayed focused on the task at hand and (did) what was called upon them to finish the game,” Bates said.

The Longhorns travel to Gainesville next Thursday to play unranked Florida.

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