The Houston Dash rolled on through their 2014 preseason campaign on Saturday afternoon with a comfortable 7-0 win over Texas Tech University at Houston Sports Park. Forward Tiffany McCarty led the way with two goals, while defender Arianna Romero added two assists.
The Red Raiders got off to a fiery start, getting a shot away that nearly missed in the opening two minutes. Texas Tech arguably had the better of play for the opening quarter of an hour, but the Dash asserted themselves offensively after that.
Half an hour in, forward Stephanie Ochs found her way down the right side and charged the near post. Ochs chipped a cross to the center of the goal where left back Nikki Washington stood unguarded to head the ball in.
Less than two minutes later, Kealia Ohai found herself in a similar position on the left side and was able to get another centering ball in. Tiffany McCarty showed great technique to hit the cross first time at the near post for the volleyed goal.
McCarty collected her second goal of the match and third of the preseason three minutes after halftime. Right back Arianna Romero found McCarty at the far post with an inch-perfect cross, and the forward headed the ball in off the Tech keeper.
The Dash brought on six substitutes in the second half, including Nigerian defender Osinachi Ohale, who just joined the team on trial. The new blood put new life in the Houston attack as they would score four more times before the final whistle.
Lindsay Elston won a tackle on the endline and immediately went towards goal, finding the slightest of openings to fire home a goal from a tight angle. Elston and Becky Edwards combined four minutes later to put Ohai in the box behind the defense, and the first-round pick rifled a shot past the goalkeeper.
Houston picked up the sixth goal in the 87th minute, with Brittany Bock rising above the Tech defense on a long free kick from Romero and looping a header into the net. Trialist Anisa Guajardo finished the scoring just as stoppage time began, picking up a turnover in the attacking third and shooting from the top of the penalty area. The shot took a deflection off a Texas Tech defender and ended up in the back of the goal for the final time on the afternoon.
The Dash improved their preseason record to 3-1-0 with the victory, with two matches left to play before the April 12 opener against Portland Thorns FC. Houston travels to Ellis Field in College Station to take on Texas A&M this Wednesday at 8 p.m. CT.
Houston Dynamo vs. Texas Tech University
March 29, 2014—Houston Sports Park, Houston, TX
NWSL Preseason
Scoring Summary:
Houston: Nikki Washington 1 (Stephanie Ochs 1) 30
Houston: Tiffany McCarty 2 (Kealia Ohai 2) 32
Houston: Tiffany McCarty 3 (Arianna Romero 1) 48
Houston: Lindsay Elston 1 (unassisted) 73
Houston: Kealia Ohai 2 (Lindsay Elston 1, Becky Edwards 1) 77
Houston: Brittany Bock 1 (Arianna Romero 2) 87
Houston Dash: Erin McLeod; Arianna Romero, Marissa Diggs (Dominique Richardson* 68), Holly Hein* (Osinachi Ohale* 59), Nikki Washington (Kika Toulouse 59); Becky Edwards, Teresa Noyola (Lindsay Elston 59), Brittany Bock; Stephanie Ochs (Tori McCombs* 68), Kealia Ohai, Tiffany McCarty (Anisa Guajardo* 68)
*Trialist
Texas Tech University: Starters: Lauren Watson; Meagan McCullough, Jade Dapaah, Hannah Devine, Jaelene Hinkle; Erin Inman, Alli Murphy, Paige Strahan, Caity Heap; Briana Rohmer, Janine Beckie
Substitutes: Madison McAdams, Ashley Casey, Stephanie Sorrells
Disciplinary Summary
TTU: Briana Rohmer (caution) 36
