Soccer

Shorthanded Cougars satisfied with draw

The Cougars fought to a scoreless draw against North Texas on Sunday.

Head coach Susan Bush was pleased with the performance, even though her team was unable to capitalize on its best scoring opportunities.

“In the second half, we played a little bit better. We kept the ball, we had some good passing sequences, and we had a few more chances on goal,” Bush said.

The Cougars’ best chance came late in the game, when Jessica Zavalza’s shot from 12 yards out landed just wide of the near post.

Bush has watched this pattern of missed opportunities follow the team from last season and said she hopes that some fresh faces will help turn UH’s offense around.

“It’s still the same problem we were having in the fall,” Bush said. “We have the same personnel, but we recruited a bunch of offensive players, and hopefully we’ll start getting it in the back of the net.”

Although the Cougars failed to score, they held the Mean Green to only two shots on goal.

Bush attributed the shutout to her team’s strong performance in the defensive third of the field.

“I thought our defense did really well,” Bush said. “Kaci Bush, Stephanie Derieg and the back four, I was very pleased with.”

The Cougars have been coping with injuries since the end of the fall season. An unhealthy squad has forced Bush to play players out of position — and even to cancel some games.

This was the case for the Cougars’ contest with Houston Baptist, which they were scheduled to play at 4:30 p.m. the same day.

“We’re done for today. Originally we had two games, but with lack of numbers we can’t play again,” Bush said. “We don’t have the legs.”

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