TicketsAUSTIN, Texas— The University of Cincinnati women's soccer team season comes to a close after suffering a 2-1 loss to the nation's fifth-ranked team and tournament No. 1 seed Texas Tech in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championships on Monday inside Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Cincinnati ends the year with a record of 4-8-7, while Texas Tech remains unbeaten this season with a record of 15-0-4. The Bearcats' exit in their inaugural Big 12 championship tournament comes after the team defeated Baylor in the first round.
Down 1-0 coming out of the half, Cincinnati was determined to bring the game back to even. Junior Laura Zemberyova turned defense into offense as she forced a turnover at midfield and proceeded to march down the field, blasting a shot off the hands of Texas Tech goalkeeper Madison White and into the back of the net to tie the game in the 57th minute.
Zemberyova's netted her fourth goal of the season, a team-high, and the 10th of her career. Senior Ellie Flower recorded her second career assist on the play.
The Presov, Slovakia native achieved a feat few players have been able to achieve this season, as the game-equalizing goal was only the ninth goal White had allowed all season and the first she has allowed in two games.
With the score tied 1-1 in the 89th minute and both teams preparing for overtime, the Red Raiders Gisselle Kozarski ended Cincinnati's season in heartbreaking fashion as she bent a ball past the outstretched arms of UC goalkeeper Anna Rexford to give Texas Tech the lead and the eventual victory.
Despite the score differential, Cincinnati was in control for the majority of the game, outshooting Texas Tech 12-10 and leading in corner kicks 4-1.
Cincinnati came to play and immediately brought the pressure to Texas Tech in the first half. The Bearcats outshot Texas Tech 6-3 in the half but it was the Red Raiders who would break the scoreless tie as Hannah Anderson found the back of the net 13 minutes into the game.
Graduate student Ashley Barron ended her Cincinnati career as one of the best to put on a Bearcat jersey. Over the course of her five-year career, she tailed 7,111 minutes played, the second most career minutes played by a non-goalkeeper in program history. She joins former Bearcats Vanessa Giles and Kayla Utley as the only Bearcats ever to record over 7,000 career minutes played.
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