Aggie soccer brings conference play to the friendly confines of Ellis Field this Thursday. Texas A&M faces off against Arkansas on Thursday at 6PM. They game will be carried live on the SEC Network.
The Aggies hobble a bit into this game against yet another highly ranked team. Arkansas is 6-2 on the season and has earned a #16 ranking nationally. Arkansas also tied with A&M as the preseason pick to win the conference. That wasn't much of a surprise as the two sides tied for the 2020 SEC Championship.
Arkansas opened the season with losses to a pair of ACC powerhouses. They lost 1-3 at Duke, then 0-1 at UNC in overtime. Since then, they have ridden a 6 game winning streak into this match. Notable wins include BYU (2-0) and Tennessee (3-1).
In all, Arkansas has outscored opponents 26-6 and has shutout 4 opponents. Scoring has been fairly distributed with 11 players scoring goals and 6 scoring multiple goals this season. Forwards Parker Goins (#22) and Anna Podojil (#16) share the team lead in goals (5) and assists (5). They've also matched each other in shots (19). Most fans should recognize both of these players as all-conference selections.
Podojil is certainly the player that receives the most press for Arkansas. She was 1st team All-American last year and has garnered SEC Forward of the Year and SEC Freshman of the year honors. She is also naturally on the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. Parker Goins has been around this program since 2017 and was named 1st Team All-SEC alongside her teammate over the last two years.
Senior Haley VanFossen is the heart of the Razorback defense. She is looking for her 4th consecutive All-SEC First Team honors and is among the talents on the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. She's been an anchor for a defense that has been stout since her arrival. Arkansas has limited opponents to 82 shots and 33 SOG (compared to their marks of 172 and 93).
Senior Goalkeeper Hannah Warner has allowed just 6 goals on the season while totalling 27 saves. Warner joined the squad from Oklahoma State during the spring 2021 portion of the 2020 season. She appeared in all 5 of the spring games, including Arkansas' two NCAA Tournament matches.
The Aggies lost to Arkansas in Fayetteville last season by a score of 1-2 and the Aggies are in the midst of a 3 game losing streak to the hogs. All time, the Aggies are officially 8-4 against Arkansas. (As a reminder: Arkansas claims 3 additional victories which came against non-scholarship Aggie club teams (prior to 1993), including a 1986 forfeiture).
I really hate to call this game a "must-win," but at this point it really does feel like the Aggies NEED this win. It's odd to see an unranked Aggie team play host to a highly ranked conference team. But on the surface, it seems like it should be a somewhat evenly matched game. The Aggies must contend with the fantastic forwards that Arkansas brings, especially the ELITE talent of Anna Podojil. The pair share an impressive 26.3% shot percentage and both place over 58% of their shots on goal. Obviously, this means that their shots need to be limited and we can't see those defensive miscues that will give them looks at the net. And man, have goals been hard to come by for the Aggies in these types of match ups. I think the scoreline will be 1-1 through 90' and then we'll be in for some really tense overtime moments.
The Aggies hobble a bit into this game against yet another highly ranked team. Arkansas is 6-2 on the season and has earned a #16 ranking nationally. Arkansas also tied with A&M as the preseason pick to win the conference. That wasn't much of a surprise as the two sides tied for the 2020 SEC Championship.
Arkansas opened the season with losses to a pair of ACC powerhouses. They lost 1-3 at Duke, then 0-1 at UNC in overtime. Since then, they have ridden a 6 game winning streak into this match. Notable wins include BYU (2-0) and Tennessee (3-1).
In all, Arkansas has outscored opponents 26-6 and has shutout 4 opponents. Scoring has been fairly distributed with 11 players scoring goals and 6 scoring multiple goals this season. Forwards Parker Goins (#22) and Anna Podojil (#16) share the team lead in goals (5) and assists (5). They've also matched each other in shots (19). Most fans should recognize both of these players as all-conference selections.
Podojil is certainly the player that receives the most press for Arkansas. She was 1st team All-American last year and has garnered SEC Forward of the Year and SEC Freshman of the year honors. She is also naturally on the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. Parker Goins has been around this program since 2017 and was named 1st Team All-SEC alongside her teammate over the last two years.
Senior Haley VanFossen is the heart of the Razorback defense. She is looking for her 4th consecutive All-SEC First Team honors and is among the talents on the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. She's been an anchor for a defense that has been stout since her arrival. Arkansas has limited opponents to 82 shots and 33 SOG (compared to their marks of 172 and 93).
Senior Goalkeeper Hannah Warner has allowed just 6 goals on the season while totalling 27 saves. Warner joined the squad from Oklahoma State during the spring 2021 portion of the 2020 season. She appeared in all 5 of the spring games, including Arkansas' two NCAA Tournament matches.
The Aggies lost to Arkansas in Fayetteville last season by a score of 1-2 and the Aggies are in the midst of a 3 game losing streak to the hogs. All time, the Aggies are officially 8-4 against Arkansas. (As a reminder: Arkansas claims 3 additional victories which came against non-scholarship Aggie club teams (prior to 1993), including a 1986 forfeiture).
I really hate to call this game a "must-win," but at this point it really does feel like the Aggies NEED this win. It's odd to see an unranked Aggie team play host to a highly ranked conference team. But on the surface, it seems like it should be a somewhat evenly matched game. The Aggies must contend with the fantastic forwards that Arkansas brings, especially the ELITE talent of Anna Podojil. The pair share an impressive 26.3% shot percentage and both place over 58% of their shots on goal. Obviously, this means that their shots need to be limited and we can't see those defensive miscues that will give them looks at the net. And man, have goals been hard to come by for the Aggies in these types of match ups. I think the scoreline will be 1-1 through 90' and then we'll be in for some really tense overtime moments.
