Sports writer Beatrix Caudal covers TU women’s soccer’s consecutive wins against Tulsa rival ORU and Temple.
On Thursday, Sept. 15, Tulsa women’s soccer took on Temple University at home in the Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium to kick off this year’s American Athletic Conference season. After a busy pre-season and summer of training, the Lady Hurricane, led by head coach Jim Rhein, came ready to perform and showcase the newest class of freshmen players. Not only did Tulsa claim a 1-0 win, with Tulsa freshman Jordan Frederick — player number twenty-one — scoring the lone goal, but they also dominated throughout the game with 15 more shots than Temple’s Lady Owls and 58 percent% of the overall possession. For the majority of the first half, the play remained in Temple’s defensive end, a sign of the success of the Tulsa midfielders and forwards. In maintaining such dominance, the Lady Hurricane obtained two yellow cards. The shutout is the first shutout for the Golden Hurricane since 2019 and a victorious way to start the conference season.
On Sunday, Sept. 18, Tulsa women’s soccer played at home again, hosting long-time rival Oral Roberts University. After dominating the first half, Frederick, assisted by defender Madison Tokarchik, scored the first and only goal of the game in minute 27, securing the Tulsa win going into halftime. Throughout the game, the defense stayed organized, which facilitated the clean sheet, with goalkeeper Tatum Sanders only needing to make three saves to ensure the shutout.
At the match versus ORU, the Tulsa student section brought the energy, with the student section filling a stand. In total, according to the NCAA, 346 fans attended the game, compared to the 146 who showed up to see the game against Temple. This is the beauty of a turf-war rivalry: fans of both teams are able to show up at the game to support their team, regardless of who is hosting. The energy was certainly high on the field as well, with 26 total fouls and three yellow cards, one of which went to the Lady Golden Hurricane.
Against Temple and ORU, Frederick shined as a leader, earning her the honor of American Offensive Player of the Week. This alone is a great honor, but it is even more impressive that Frederick earned this as a freshman. In addition, later in the week, College Soccer News (CSN) named Frederick on the CSN National Team of the Week. In receiving this honor, Frederick is the first Tulsa athlete to be honored by CSN. Not only has the Lady Golden Hurricane found impressive freshmen offensive players, but also found a goalie and superstar in freshman Sanders, who played a total of 180 minutes in the two games. Due to her 2 shut-outs and 6 saves in one week, Sanders earned the title of Rookie of the Week by the AAC and was named Player of the Match against ORU. Such honors and celebrations are a great way to kick off a new season, with great hopes of the Lady Hurricane future naturally accompanying such a promising freshman class.
