Freshman Anka Grotle's goal in the 89th minute propelled UTSA to its third victory of the season on Sunday.
SAN ANTONIO — Junior Jodi Leroy and freshman Anka Grotle scored late second-half goals to help lead UTSA to a 2-1, come-from-behind victory against Houston Baptist in Sunday's home opener at the UTSA Recreational Sports Complex.
With the win, the Roadrunners improved to 3-1 for the best four-game start in school history. The Huskies fell to 1-2.
Trailing 1-0 with less than 20 minutes to play, UTSA turned up the offensive pressure. Freshman Maria Jose Rojas had a good look in the 75th minutes, but her shot hit the crossbar. Grotle grabbed the deflection and found Leroy, who fired a blast from about 25 yards out on the left side and into the back of the net for the equalizer.
With extra time seeming likely, UTSA mounted a late attack in the final two minutes. Two consecutive corner kicks came up empty, but the third time was the charm. Senior Chelsea Zimmerman sent the ball into the box and found Grotle near the top. The Flora, Norway, native put the ball past HBU keeper Shelby Horn with her right foot for the game winner with just 1:47 to play.
“The goal seemed small today, but we kept battling,” head coach Steve Ballard said. “Even when we got down a goal, we never quit. That’s a credit to the girls for overcoming adversity late in the match. It’s always a good feeling to win your home opener and we were fortunate to do that today against a team that played very well.”
Amina Radoncic broke the scoreless tie in the 66th minute. Amina Radoncic got off a shot on target that was stopped by freshman goalkeeper Danielle Snyder. She was unable to secure the ball, which was punched back into the goal by Kristina Burhans.
UTSA got off 31 shots, including 14 on goal, compared to just 10 shots (four on goal) by the Huskies. Sophomore Dacia Webb stopped a pair of shots in 57-plus minutes of work in the net to earn her first win of the season.
The Roadrunners return to action at Baylor on Friday.