April 18, 2001
Box Score
WACO, Texas - The Baylor soccer team used a high-octane first half to take an early lead, then held on through the second half to beat the Mexico Women's National Team 3-1 Wednesday evening at Betty Lou Mays Soccer Field.
The Bears controlled the flow of the game for the first 45 minutes, scoring two goals in the first half while holding Mexico scoreless. Whitney Barrett scored in the 15th minute on an assist by Ryan Lee to put Baylor up 1-0. The Bears scored again 12 minutes later when Candace Reilly pushed the ball past Mexico goalkeeper Laura Gabriela Cruz Ysunza for Baylor's second goal.
"Our girls came out with a lot of nervous energy, really ready for such a big game," Baylor head coach Nick Cowell said. "Our strategy was to get up on Mexico early and hold on, and that's what we did."
Monica Gonzalez Conales, a member of the Mexico national team that made the World Cup in 1999, scored her team's lone goal six minutes into the second half. Baylor answered at the 63:50 mark when Emily Fukuchi powered the ball into the net from 60 feet out, giving Baylor a 3-1 lead. Mexico controlled the ball for most of the second half, but was unable to score again.
"We expected them to come out attacking in the second half, and they did," Cowell said. "We just didn't give in."
The match was played in front of a Baylor-record 1810 fans. That number eclipsed the previous home field record by over 450, the old record of 1,372 fans was set Sept. 3, 1999 against San Diego in the first game at what was then called Baylor Soccer Stadium.
"We expected a big crowd," Cowell said. "Baylor did a good job of promoting this, both in the Hispanic community and on campus, and the results showed in the number of people who came out tonight."
The Mexico national team concludes its U.S. tour in Dallas with games vs. SMU (April 20) and Texas A&M (April 21). Both games will be played at SMU.
Wednesday's game was the final match of the spring for the Bears. Baylor soccer begins the fall by hosting Arizona State at 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 31.
