By Alan Wiederhold
HT Athletic Communications
HAWKINS, Texas – Huston-Tillotson University's women's soccer team claimed its first win of the 2025 season and gave
Oriol Gimeno his first win as a collegiate head soccer coach Monday with a 4-0 win at Jarvis Christian.
At JCU's Wendon L. Blair Soccer Field, HT sophomore
Caroline Valencia (Burnet, Texas/Burnet) claimed the match-winner with her first collegiate goal in the 27th minute. A transfer, Valencia played in nine matches for NAIA institution Oklahoma Wesleyan as a freshman in 2023 but netted her first collegiate points Monday in an HT uniform.
Valencia scored from a rebound off a shot from teammate Jerusalem Rodríguez-Gamez that was saved by JCU's goalkeeper but was unable to be controlled. Rodríguez-Gamez was credited with the assist, one of two she earned Monday.
Though the Rams (1-2) outshot Jarvis Christian 28-10 (and enjoyed a 21-14 advantage in available players for the match), the host Bulldogs stifled HT scoring opportunities until the second half, when the Rams added three more goals.
Nathalia Herreros (New York, N.Y./Hutto [Texas]) scored her first goal of the season in 57th minute.
Herreros' unassisted goal was the second of her HT career and first against an NAIA opponent.
HT senior striker
Kayla Evans (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Fort Lauderdale) gave put the match out of reach of the hosts with a pair of goals less than seven minutes apart, scoring in the 73rd and 79th minute. Her two-goal performance was the third multi-goal match of her HT career after transferring from NCAA Division I Mississippi Valley State in time for the 2024 season.
Senior midfielder
Lincy Villatoro (Los Angeles, Calif./West Los Angeles College) assisted on both of Evans' strikes. A graduate student at HT, netted her first collegiate points since 2018, when she played her junior season at Texas A&M–Texarkana.
Krystal Trejo (Lockhart, Texas/Lockhart) also tallied an assist on Evans' first goal.
The Rams' starting defense of
Sallie Buhr (Stuttgart, Germany),
Alicia Gonzales (Kearns, Utah), Kiara Leitón Amador (San José, Costa Rica), and
Izabella Olivo (San Marcos, Texas/San Marcos) was key in further limiting scoring chances for a JCU squad already hindered by its roster size.
HT sophomore
Juliet Morales-Martinez (Burnet, Texas/Burnet) made two saves in goal for the Rams, while freshman
Citlaly Vences (Baytown, Texas/Goose Creek Memorial) stopped three shots in the second half.
The Rams snapped a two-match losing streak to Jarvis Christian, their former Red River Athletic Conference rival. HT had won its first eight matches over the Bulldogs in a series that dates back to 2014 but claimed its first win since a 1-0 triumph in Hawkins in 2022.
HT's soccer teams return to action Friday, Sept. 5, when they visit Arlington Baptist for a women's-and-men's doubleheader. The women kick off at 5 p.m.
– HT –
