Mizzou soccer shows promise in 1-0 loss to Vanderbilt

The soul group the Commodores once declared they were “easy like Sunday morning.” If the No. 3 Vanderbilt Commodores were hoping for an easy Friday evening, they were surely disappointed.

The Commodores did leave Audrey J. Walton Stadium with the 1-0 victory, but Missouri turned what could have (even should have) been a rout into a close game. The Tigers put together one of their most complete performances of the year, limiting one of the best offenses in the country to three on-target shots.

Missouri held a 5-3 edge in shots on target, though Vanderbilt won the overall shot count 11-10. Most of the Commodores’ attempts never truly tested Tigers keeper Riley Wilkerson, who had a quiet night with only two saves.

Riley Morse, Taryn Chance and Aly Bryant led the team with two shots apiece, keeping steady pressure on the Vanderbilt back line. That pressure intensified after halftime, when the Tigers took eight of their 10 shots. Vanderbilt finished with only three shots on goal, and zero in the second half.

“I thought we came out swinging in the in the second half,” Golan said. “I thought we were on the front foot, I thought we were pushing. I thought that the team believed that they could find a way to get a result and played like it. ”

Mizzou’s defense put in a valiant effort early, holding off Vanderbilt’s attack, but the Commodores broke the deadlock inside the first 15 minutes. Freshman Mia Herbert curled a left-footed shot into the side netting, beating Wilkerson.

Sydney Watts was credited with the assist. She is second in the nation in points and tied for fourth in goals, with 13 through 12 games. She has scored in every match this season except against Georgia. Watts has five SEC goals on her own, while Missouri as a team has scored just three in conference play.

Herbert, a Kansas City, Mo., native, is second in the SEC in points behind only Watts, with four goals and two assists in conference play.

“Vanderbilt is a team that’s very good,” Golan said. “They like to get isolated in the wide space and get get service across. I thought we did a really good job when they did isolate us.”

For much of the first half, Missouri stayed organized, ceding possession to the Commodores and keeping the deficit at one goal. Its best chance came off a corner, when Audrey Gilbert got her head on the delivery and forced the keeper to stretch back for a one-handed save.

Chance, who rescued a draw against Arkansas last week, created the Tigers’ best look of the night in the 72nd minute. She danced around a Vanderbilt defender and fired an on-target shot that nearly caught the keeper off balance.

The Tigers saw out the second half with very little contest from the Commodores, as they continued their search for an equalizer. Finishing with three corners in the second half, Missouri’s search came up short.

“I don’t think that we had any lulls in the second half. I thought every person who stepped on the field gave everything that she could, “Golan said. “The players on the sideline were pouring energy into the players on the field as well. I thought the team was really resilient.”

The loss now moves Missouri to 0-5-1 in conference play and 3-8-2 overall. The Tigers now prepare for the final four game stretch of their season, which begins with road trips to Ole Miss and Georgia next week.