STILLWATER, Okla. -- Kendall Kloza, Jordyn Hyland and Ellis Patterson each netted goals, leading UTSA soccer to a 3-0 win over Tulsa, on Sunday afternoon at Oklahoma State's Neal Patterson Stadium.
UTSA (1-1) routed Tulsa (0-2) in the finale of the Cowgirl Invitational, hosted by OSU on Thursday and Sunday. Kloza opened the scoring in the 24th minute, Patterson struck in the 67th minute and Hyland gave UTSA an insurmountable lead in the 68th minute.
The Roadrunners battled through a quartet of lightning delays in the 61st minute after owning a 1-0 lead. Out of the break, UTSA busted open the contest with the goals from Patterson and Hyland.
"I'm really proud of our players for their focus and resiliency to deal with the challenges today," UTSA head coach Derek Pittman said. "It was a very hot day, it felt like 105 degrees, and we had to battle a significant delay. We knew it was going to be about mentality and focus. Our players did a phenomenal job, showing a level of grit and toughness that made me very proud of us to get a result on the road."
A product of San Antonio's Lee High School, Kloza struck in the 24th minute on a corner-kick tally, her third career goal and her first since 2019-20.
In the 67th minute, Patterson – a native of Austin, Texas – netted her 17th career goal, the fourth-most in UTSA history. She owns 47 career points, ranking fifth in school annals. Freshman Anna Sutter, a native of Switzerland, recorded her first career assist.
Hyland, a freshman out of Golden, Colo., notched her first career goal on an assist from Sarina Russ in the 68th minute.
UTSA keeper Jil Schneider totaled three saves in the outing, posting her first clean sheet of the year and the fourth of her career. Tulsa keeper Emma Malsy totaled four saves in 90 minutes.
The Roadrunners and Tulsa each fired 16 shots, with UTSA owning an 8-4 margin in shots on target. Kloza and Lexi Bolton each charted three shots to lead the offensive attack.
"The first 15-20 minutes Tulsa had the better run of play, they were possessing the ball, making us chase all over," Pittman said. "They came out in different shape than we anticipated and it took us a bit to adjust. We earned a corner and Kendall scored on a set piece to put us up 1-0. After the goal, we settled down a little bit better. We made a few subs and the energy of the team was much better to close out the half. To start the second half, we knew Tulsa was going to throw everything they had at us and we did a good job of weathering the storm and creating our opportunities on the counter attack. We scored a pair of goals out of the lighting delay and were able to manage the rest of the contest. Tulsa threw everything they had left at us and Jill made a few good saves and our defenders made a number of blocks in and around the box."
The win marked the first in two all-time meetings with Tulsa and the first for UTSA head coach Derek Pittman in a matchup against his alma matter. Pittman was a four-year starter and team captain at Tulsa, where he earned All-Missouri Valley Conference accolades in 1995. After a professional playing career, Pittman began his coaching journey as a graduate assistant with the Golden Hurricane.
The Roadrunners return to action on Thursday, hosting California Baptist at 7 p.m. in the home opener at Park West Athletics Complex. The game will be streamed live on CUSA TV.
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