North Texas Soccer Advances To C-USA Semis

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HOUSTON – No Rachel Holden. No Vanessa Ibewuike. No problem. The rest of the North Texas soccer lineup had plenty of ammo to take down FIU, 4-1, in quarterfinal action at the Conference USA Tournament.

Holden, the C-USA Offensive Player of the Year, and Ibewuike, a third-team All-C-USA representative, combined to score 17 regular-season goals for the Mean Green (13-6-1), but both were forced to sit in the rematch of last year’s Sun Belt Tournament final due to cards.

The rest of the Mean Green roster picked up the slack, outshooting the Golden Panthers (7-12) 21-10, including an 8-3 edge in shots on target.

“Tonight was about finishing our chances against an opponent we have a lot of respect for and know so well,” said North Texas head coach John Hedlund. “Amber Haggerty, Karla Pineda,Lynda Hercules and Leah Cox stepped up big for us offensively. We’re all excited about playing Friday night in the semifinals and being at full strength.”

Hercules opened the scoring with a blast from 30-yards out and Kelsey Hodges added a penalty kick goal 15 minutes later to pad the NT lead. FIU was held without a shot for the first 34:44, but rallied in the second half after a penalty shot of their own.

Pineda had the answer to quiet the Golden Panthers momentum with a bending free kick from 25-yards, and Amber Haggerty put the nail in the coffin with rip in the 82nd minute.