Cowgirl Soccer

The #okstate Cowgirls soccer team defeated UMKC for their third straight win. http://t.co/izaUjqS6ub

— O'Colly (@OColly) September 21, 2015

Nice win for OSU as they move above .500 for the start of conference play. Next up is Baylor in Waco this Friday at 7pm Central. The Lady Bears, after opening the season with 4 straight losses against major Div I opponents, took a note from the football schedulers and lined up 5 straight wins against a much weaker schedule. Will be interesting to see how the Cowgirls have progressed since that potentially season turning upset of ranked Arizona. After that will be a 1pm Sunday match at TCU, which currently stands at 6-4 and opens conference play hosting Iowa State Friday night.

WATCH: Cowgirl Soccer ASU Postgame (9.18.15) http://t.co/ISI4L6gtPF #okstate

— Orange Power Studios (@OSUStudios) September 19, 2015

After a long road trip that saw the Cowgirls go 1-3, facing 2 ranked opponents, OSU returned home to take on yet another Top 25 team in the Sun Devils, who, up to this point, had outscored their opposition 14-1 this season. CowgirlFC started quick, with Delaney Kiely knocking home a deflection on a corner kick less than 2 minutes into the match. That proved to be a flash in the pan, as Arizona State controlled possession the rest of the half. The Sun Devils would net the equalizer near the 25 minute mark, then shortly thereafter the match would be suspended for 30 minutes due to lightning in the area. When play resumed with about 10 1/2 minutes remaining, ASU caught the Cowgirls flatfooted on a free kick just outside the 18, and a clean shot beat goal keeper Michela Ongaro, giving the visitors a 2-1 advantage they would hold through halftime. After a shortened break due to the 1st half weather delay, Arizona State maintained their possession advantage, with OSU looking a bit slow and disorganized. This would change quickly, however, on the Cowgirls only real threat up to that point in the 2nd half, when the Sun Devil's goalkeeper failed to secure a short free kick from just outside the box, and Laurene Tresfield headed in the deflection in the 58th minute, evening things up with plenty of time remaining. OSU was suddenly energized, as an offense that had struggled for most of the game threatened to blow the game open, missing several good scoring opportunities. Allie Stephenson was very impressive in midfield and pressing forward. The Cowgirls would take the lead for good in the 69th minute, with Anna Beffer netting another deflection from close range. Arizona State would apply some pressure, but were unable to capitalize on several decent chances in the last moments of the match. The win improves OSU's record to 4-4 on the season, and also gives Coach Carmichael his 150th victory as a head coach. The Cowgirls travel to UMKC for a 1pm match on Sunday. They will start Big 12 play next weekend on the road at Baylor (Friday, 7pm) and TCU (Sunday, 1pm). They will close out the season with 8 matches in October, 6 of those at home. They will end with Bedlam in Norman on 10/30.

#Big12SOC: @WVUWomensSoccer tops the #Big12 Soccer Preseason Poll for the third straight year. http://t.co/XIfYT8rR5o pic.twitter.com/quyRoytHEl

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) August 12, 2015

The soccer team was actually picked higher than the football team. After going 10-10-1 last season, the Cowgirls come in with high hopes, predicted in the No. 3 spot in the Big 12 preseason poll where they will compete for at least the No. 2 spot with Texas Tech and possibly the No. 1 spot. Should be a fun year for Cowgirl and Cowboy sports in 2014-15.

Just In: #NGA Falcons XI: Sunday Esther,Courtney Dike & Sarah Nnodim play debut @FIFAWWC #SoarSuperFalcons #FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/7Zmice4jnb

— The NFF (@thenff) June 16, 2015

According to multiple reports on Twitter, including our very own Graham Coffelt, OSU forward Courtney Dike will make a start for the Nigerian National Team tonight when it takes on the USA Woman's National Team at 7 CST. Dike played last year in the U20 World Cup for Nigeria as well and if she can help her team to a win, it'd be its first of the tournament.

#okstate will take on Arizona Friday at 2 p.m. from Cowgirl Soccer Complex to open up NCAA Tournament action #Big12SOC

— Dekota Gregory (@dekotagregory) November 10, 2014