Women's Soccer Blanks Oklahoma, 1-0

[PonyPride]

Women's Soccer Blanks Oklahoma, 1-0
Benchaita scores for Mustangs; Gunter registers another shutout

FRISCO, TEXAS (SMU) - Forward Sarah Benchaita buried a crossing pass from fellow sophomore-to-be Lauren Shepherd a little over halfway through the first half, and goalkeeper Ashley Gunter registered her second shutout of the spring to lead the Mustangs to a 1-0 victory over Oklahoma in the final game of the Verizon Women's College Soccer Showcase Saturday night at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco.

The Mustangs posted their second shutout of the of the spring season against Big 12 opposition, after battling Baylor to a 0-0 tie. SMU head coach Brent Erwin said that Gunter had a very solid performance, but admitted that Gunter, a second-team All-America honoree as a sophomore, benefited from a strong performance by her defense.

"Ashley played really well, especially handling a lot of crosses," Erwin said, "but we defended so well as a unit, she didn't have to make that many saves. We didn't even have (second-team All-Central Region defender) Carley Phillips (who missed the game because of a family wedding), but Krystal Bailey filled in for her and did a great job, along with Kim Peabody, Katie Leonard and Kristin Medeiros. They did a terrific job."

The game's lone goal came a little over halfway through the game's first half, with Benchaita ending up as the beneficiary of some crisp passing by the Ponies.

"I guess Lauren (Shepherd) gets the assist, because she crossed the ball, but that goal came on the end of about 12 consecutive passes," Erwin said. " We had some great passing, and Sarah was in the right place at the right time, and when the opportunity presented itself, she finished it."

The Mustangs were among four teams invited to play in this year's Verizon Women's College Soccer Showcase - SMU's win over Oklahoma followed a game between Texas Tech and TCU - and further strengthened the connection between SMU soccer and Pizza Hut Park, the home venue for Major League Soccer's FC Dallas.

"We're really honored that we were invited to play in the Showcase," Erwin said. "SMU has a strong tie to Pizza Hut Park, where we'll host the men's College Cup next year, and a strong relationship with FC Dallas. To play a quality Big 12 team like Oklahoma in a facility like Pizza Hut Park and to come away with a shutout victory is a real highlight of our spring."

The Mustangs will wrap up their spring season at 1 p.m., Saturday, April 19, when they host Texas A&M-Commerce at Westcott Field.

SMU, the only Division I athletic program in Dallas, Texas, sponsors 17 sports and has been ranked as the top school in its conference for 10 straight years in the Director's Cup overall athletic rankings. More information about SMU and its coaches, athletes and teams is available at www.SMUMustangs.com.

[RedRiverPony]

Not bad! Shutting out a pair of Big 12 frauds (or "teams") always is a good thing.
Keep up the good work, ladies.