 "Photo: Paul Chouy, Daily Texan Staff")
The feeling is all too familiar. Outplayed and outclassed for 90 minutes, the Longhorns were bounced out of the NCAA Championship by a team whose offensive power they could not match. This year, No. 2 Portland (19-1-0), gaining its 18th consecutive win, played the role of executioner, finally ending a brave resistance with goals in the first and final 10 minutes to complete a 2-0 win on their home field at Merlo Field on Sunday afternoon.
A year ago, after coming through two regional games in College Station, Texas fell 4-0 to eventual tournament runner-up Florida State in a game even more one-sided then Sunday’s.
“Portland was outstanding,” said head coach Chris Petrucelli. “I thought our kids played really hard, and they fought right to the end. We had some of the play in the first half, but they wore us down over the course of the game. Their possession was very good. Over time, you’re going to break down, and that’s what happened.”
Three days earlier, the Longhorns (13-4-4) came through a tough first round matchup with Washington State (10-6-5), winning 1-0 on a second-half goal from forward Emily Anderson.
The junior collected a long pass on the left sideline, beat her defender and fired a low shot into the far post to provide the margin in a game lacking clear-cut chances. “When you make the tournament, everything is up for grabs, but we did not accomplish what we set out to do,” WSU head coach Matt Potter said. “In the second half, the one moment of quality Texas created, they punished us.”
Texas out-shot the Cougars 10-3 in the second half and controlled proceedings without ever looking dominant.
But after dictating the tempo and easily earning their record 11th shutout this season against the Cougars, the heavily favored Portland Pilots proved an entirely tougher proposition.
The Longhorns were off to a bright state with three shots at the Portland goal in the first nine minutes, but the Pilots struck back in the next minute. Danielle Foxhoven, an ever-present danger throughout the game, latched onto a loose ball eight-yards out following a scramble in the Texas penalty box and easily notched her 15th goal of the season.
Texas survived under a state of siege for much of the game, often starved of possession and making few forays forward. In the final 75 minutes of the match, the Longhorns took only one shot at the Portland goal.
Finally, with time winding down on Texas’ season but hope still alive for a miracle finish, Portland put the game out of reach with a penalty in the 80th minute.
Sophie Schmidt, credited with an assist on the opening goal, dispatched the spot-kick for an insurmountable 2-0 lead.
“Ten minutes left, and you’re down a goal — you never know what can happen,” Petrucelli said. “Our players were slide tackling and blocking shots and Dianna [Pfenninger] made some great saves, and the posts helped us out a couple of times as well. Our backline has been great all year, and credit to Portland because our backline is tough to score against.”
The difference in the attacking quality of the two sides was starkly evident. Portland goal scorers Schmidt and Foxhoven have 29 goals between them this season, only one less than the Texas team total of 30.
The margin of victory was no more than Portland deserved and could have been greater. The Pilots were denied by the woodwork twice in the second half, while senior Texas goalkeeper Pfenninger, playing in her last game in a legendary career at Texas, made six saves to keep her side in the game.
The Pilots ended with 22 shots on the Texas goal, compared to four for the Longhorns.
“We had trouble keeping the ball as we went forward, and that has been an issue for us all year,” Petrucelli said. “We weren’t clean enough technically, and we forced some balls. In a game like this, if you turn the ball over, it takes a long time to get it back. They made us chase.”
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