Texas Tech Battles Back for Draw in Front of Record Crowd

Emma Torres set up the equalizer with a pinpoint ball to Zdrojewski, giving Tech the answer it needed after Pepperdine found a late goal. The crowd topped any previous mark in program history, which says something about where soccer stands on this campus right now.

Texas Tech dominated the second half in almost every way except the one that matters. The Red Raiders outshot Pepperdine 13-2 after halftime and earned seven corner kicks, pushing repeatedly into dangerous areas along the flanks. Head coach Tom Stone put the blame squarely on decision-making in the final third, not effort or positioning. "If we were missing anything tonight, it wasn't the goal-scoring touch," Stone said. "It was the final pass, final decision, final choice to cross or shoot or pass or shoot, and the quality just wasn't there for us tonight."

For fans who packed the complex, the night offered a lot to cheer and one nagging question to carry home: what does a team do with 13 second-half shots and only one goal to show for it.