Senior celebration: Houston soccer smothers Texas Southern 6-0 in non-conference finale

Houston capped off non-conference play on a high note, with a 6-0 hammering of Texas Southern on senior night Sunday as Big 12 play looms.

“The performances gauged on our level and who we are,” coach Ben Williams said. “I didn’t think our performance was enough that we needed to win stuff in Big 12 play. When you win and keep a clean sheet, it’s always good. But the performance level for us going into the Big 12 needs some work.”

The Cougars took advantage of their opportunities, finishing with 22 shots (14 on target) compared to two shots for TSU.

It took a few minutes for Houston to get the goal train going, however. Despite having six shot attempts in the first 24 minutes, including four on target, the Tigers’ redshirt senior goalkeeper Alicia Audu kept the Cougars at bay with four saves. 

Houston eventually found its first goal in the 25th minute. Sophomore forward Bailey Cate dribbled the ball to the near post of Texas Southern’s goal, before hitting her shot past Audu and into the bottom left corner. 

The Cougars then doubled their lead in the 32nd minute with a penalty goal from sophomore forward Samira Minor. Junior forward Jada Arthurs made it 3-0 nearly three minutes later, with a headed goal inside the box off a whipped cross from freshman forward Elle Sloan.

Houston continued its run three minutes into the second half, with freshman forward Alex Ledbetter scoring off a cross from Cate. Junior midfielder and captain Casey Maddox added a fifth that sailed into the bottom left corner, after an attempted headed clearance from Tigers junior defender Kinifoh Coulibaly.

Texas Southern gifted a sixth goal to the Cougars when Tigers sophomore defender Gabby Gonzalez scored in her own net off a cross by Sloan.

After the match, Houston honored 10 players playing their final collegiate season, aiming to make it as memorable as possible.

“It’s important for them to get recognized and the contribution they made to the program is always important,” Williams said. “We’re grateful that we can do senior day with so many and celebrate so many people.”

The Cougars begin conference play on Friday, Sept. 18, when they travel to Buser Family Park in Manhattan, Kan., to take on Kansas State at 6:30 p.m.