2010 Texas AandM Aggies women's soccer team

Lineup/Formation

Roster/Statistics

Non-Conference

Texas A&M opened a highly anticipated season by hosting annual rival North Carolina in College Station. Many thought the Aggies were heavy favorites considering their talented and experienced roster, while the Tar Heels (although ranked #1 coming off their national title) were completely rebuilding with several freshmen starting their first game on the road. Instead, the Tar Heels came out on fire, attacking the Aggies early and often with precision passing and scoring a quick goal in the 3rd minute by Meghan Klingenberg from 30 yards out. Although A&M temporarily righted the ship, UNC added a second goal in the 20th minute off a header by Ali Hawkins on a corner kick. The Aggies' best chance to score came in the 28th minute when Alyssa Mautz struck the crossbar with a shot that then bounced off the Tar Heel goalkeeper out-of-bounds. North Carolina added a 3rd goal for the 3–0 win in the 60th minute, but by that point in the match they had complete control and were basically on cruise control. The loss for the Aggies was only the third season-opening loss and was a crushing blow both for the team and the fans (2,822 in attendance), and it signaled that this team might not be quite at the lofty level that most thought it would be before the season.

However, A&M would respond to this disappointment by ripping off 6 straight wins, with a notable 5–3 win over Virginia Tech in the annual Fish Camp game that drew 5,560 fans to the Aggie Soccer Stadium. A&M's first road trip of the season resulted in wins over Indiana (5–2) and Purdue (2–1), but the following weekend the anticipated rematch with #3 Portland resulted in a 1–0 loss in Portland that was not as close as the score indicated. The Pilots controlled the match from the outset, dominating possession and firing off multiple shots on goal early in the match. If not for a heroic effort from GK Kelly Dyer, who made several spectacular saves after replacing the injured Kristen Arnold, A&M would have lost by a large margin. The Aggies were able to conclude the non-conference slate with a home win over an overmatched Cal State Northridge side 5–0.

Conference

A&M had not won a Big 12 championship since 2007, a fact that loomed large in the minds of the coaches and players, who had dedicated themselves to regaining the conference crown in 2010. Things got off to a rocky start with a shocking 2–1 OT loss to Colorado at home after a lightning delay that sent many fans home because of the late start. CU's Lizzy Herzl netted the winning goal in the 99th minute, sending the stunned crowd home in silence. However, as they did after the tough loss to UNC in the home opener, the Aggies re-focused and won 8 straight games. A big win over Nebraska (which was moving to the Big 10 in 2011) in Lincoln 2–1 (which snapped the Huskers' 18-game home winning streak) highlighted the next five games as A&M usually took control of matches early and posted four straight shutouts over Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, and Iowa State.

The penultimate moment of the season probably came at Missouri in a hard fought 4–2 win in a game that was nationally televised by ESPNU. F Merritt Mathias netted 2 goals, while M Rachel Shipley and F Nora Skelton each added a goal in the come from behind effort. The impressive win came with a high price, however, as M Beth West went down with an injury that would plague her the rest of the season. With 3 games left, A&M only needed to win their next 2 at home against Oklahoma and league leader Oklahoma State to clinch a share of the conference title. The Sooners proved to be a difficult out as they forced A&M to extra time before F Alyssa Mautz concluded her terrific match by scoring the winning goal in the 2OT. In the de facto Big 12 championship game, A&M took an early lead on #5 Oklahoma State when F Whitney Hooper was taken down in the penalty box for a penalty kick. M Rachel Shipley calmly put away the goal for a 1–0 lead that would hold up for the win, clinching A&M's 11th Big 12 title. The Aggies' defense, which had arguably been an achilles' heel over the years, continued their stellar play, stifling the OSU offense and limiting the Cowgirls to 3 shots on goal. The back line of Bri Young, Rachel Balaguer, Mary Schmidt, and freshman sensation Rachel Lenz was possibly A&M's best defense in school history, especially in the second half of the season. The regular season ended with a 1–1 draw at Texas in a game that was played at a fierce pace, with F Alyssa Mautz scoring the goal for the Aggies.

At the Big 12 tournament in San Antonio, A&M escaped an upset bid by Colorado (in their last meeting before CU moved to the new Pac-12 in 2011) in the quarterfinals by advancing via penalty kicks 5–4 after a 0–0 draw in regulation and OT. But the upset did occur in a semifinal loss to Oklahoma, 1–0 in OT. The mounting injuries on A&M's side became a major factor entering the postseason, which would be confirmed the following week in Minnesota.

NCAA Tournament

Texas A&M was awarded a 4-seed by the NCAA tournament committee, but they were surprisingly sent to Minneapolis, MN in a pod with Minnesota, Creighton, and North Dakota St. The Aggies were clearly disappointed with this seeding and not being able to host for the second straight year after hosting the 1st/2nd Round games for 14 consecutive years (1995–2008). A&M battled cool conditions (low 40s) to forge a tie with North Dakota St. 1–1 through 2OT, but prevailed in a penalty shootout 4–3 when GK Kelly Dyer saved a Bison PK to advance to the 2nd Round. M Rachel Shipley converted a PK in the 7th minute to give A&M an early lead before the Bison tied the game in the 75th minute.

The weather conditions for the 2nd Round game against Minnesota almost postponed the match entirely. 82,000 cubic feet (2,300 m³) of snow had to be cleared from the playing surface the morning of the game, while temperatures hovered around 32 degrees at kickoff. Clearly out of their element, the Aggies struggled to find possession or any rhythm as the Gophers quickly took control of the match early and scored their first goal in the 13th minute off a corner kick. GK Kristen Arnold (8 saves) played valiantly, keeping the Aggies in the match with multiple point blank saves in the 1st Half as the Gophers had an 11–1 shot advantage at the half. A&M played better in the 2nd half and their best chance came in the 55th minute when F Whitney Hooper slipped on the wet field during a breakaway on goal. Minnesota put the game away in the 76th minute off a rebound in the box for the 2–0 victory.

A&M's season ended abruptly and was considered very disappointing considering the team's high expectations before the season began. Several key injuries to starters throughout the season derailed the Aggies chances for a deep tournament run. Beth West, Bri Young, and Katie Hamilton were all lost with season-ending injuries, while others such as Merritt Mathias and Whitney Hooper battled injuries down the stretch but still managed to play in the post-season. It was a bitter end for the 8 seniors that had won 2 Big 12 titles and advanced to both the Elite 8 and Sweet 16 in their careers, although they still were one of the winningest classes in school history.