SAN ANGELO – In their first match since a disappointing scoreless draw against Oklahoma Christian on Saturday, the Belles returned home emphatically, scoring four times in the first half as they cruised to a 5-0 victory over UTPB on Wednesday night.\
Before the match, this past spring's team was presented their championship rings for winning the LSC Tournament, going 10-0 in the process.
The Belles, who took five shots in the opening 10 minutes of the match, found the breakthrough in the 14
th minute, when an
Avery McNeme shot would hit off the crossbar and deflect right to the feet of
Grace Jordan, who would tap in her fourth goal of the season. The freshman is tied for the team lead in goals scored this season.
McNeme would find the target just four minutes later, scoring her third goal of the season with an outside of the box effort that snuck past the Falcons goalkeeper, to double the host's lead.
The Belles would piece together a counter-attacking goal five minutes later, with
Madison Stokes delivering a lofted ball over the Falcons defense to the feet of
Gabby Villagrand, who calmly finished with her left foot for her second goal of the season.
The first half scoring would wrap up in the 31
st minute when a
Kiah Benham corner kick found its way to the feet of defender
Cassidy Hill, who smashed the ball into the top corner for her first goal of the season.
The fifth and final goal, scored five minutes into the second half, featured a one-two pass between Stokes and
Katelin Heise in the buildup, the latter of whom set up her teammate with an elegant backheel pass, allowing Stokes to thread a through ball to
Breanne Bittick, who finished to the goalkeeper's right for her second goal of the season.
All in all, the Belles took 24 shots, with nine coming on target, while the defense held UTPB to a solitary shot, which was off target. The Belles record their conference-best seventh shutout of the season in the process.
The Belles are 8-1-1 on the season and 3-1-1 in conference play. They travel to North Texas to play eighth-ranked DBU on Saturday in a rematch of this past spring's LSC Tournament Championship match.
