The Fruits of Adysen Armenta’s Labor Show Up in Vanderbilt Soccer’s Tournament Win

Adysen Armenta put in extra work in recent weeks and it paid off in Friday’s Round of 32 win over Clemson.

Vanderbilt soccer defender/midfielder Adysen Armenta (6) celebrates a goal scores in 2-1 win over Yale on Aug. 29. | @VandySoccer / X

NASHVILLE – Vanderbilt soccer defender and midfielder Adysen Armenta stood at the top of the goalie box about 20 yards in front of Clemson goalie Nona Reason, looking for an opportunity to strike. 

The ball bounced off two Clemson defenders, rolled out to a wide open Armenta, who kicked the ball through the legs of a Clemson defender as well as the legs of Vanderbilt forward Sydney Watts and went into the net for the game-winning goal.

It was the goal that gave Vanderbilt a 3-2 victory in what was a double overtime thriller that sent the Commodores to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. But for Armenta it was a moment that she had been waiting for for months.

“I've been wanting that one for a while. So I was just happy to give back to my team, because they do so much for me,” Armenta said of what went through her mind seeing the ball go past Reason’s goalie glove and into the net.

The goal was a culmination of hard work paying off. Over the past three weeks, Armenta has spent about 10 minutes with Vanderbilt associate head coach Casey Derkacz after each practice, practicing shots from the same distance that she scored from in Friday night’s game. 

As the extra work put in each day continued, the better Armenta got. The better Aremanta got, the bigger her confidence grew. And it all came together like target practice in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

“It's a great testament to what can happen from a confidence perspective and an execution perspective when your moment occurs,” Vanderbilt head coach Darren Ambrose said. “She spent three weeks, maybe more than 10 minutes. All it took was ball after ball after ball. The ball she struck was almost identical to the ones that she's been striking with, with Casey [Derkacz] and some other players.”

The goal was Armenta’s third goal of the season and her first since Vanderbilt’s 2-1 win over Yale on Aug. 29. The fruit of Armenta’s labor showed up with a game-winner. But even more so, what made Armenta’s goal more meaningful was due to the ups and downs she has experienced this season.

Armenta missed seven weeks of the season due to an injury that kept her out from early September up to the final week of October. On top of making her coach feel proud of her for delivering in a big-time moment, Armenta expressed her emotion as she talked about how rewarding it was to score and contribute in a big way despite the lows she has been through this season.

“When I saw the goal, I got really emotional just because it's been a rough few months. But I just have no words. I'm just so excited and happy that I could give back to my team after not being able to do anything for a while,” Armenta said.

Armenta gave her team more than her teammates could have possibly asked for. Her moment sent Vanderbilt to its second consecutive Sweet 16 appearance. The Commodores are seeking to get to the Elite 8 for the first time in program history. 

A year ago, Vanderbilt fell to Penn State in the Sweet 16. This year, it takes on LSU for the third time this season. The two teams tied in the first on Sep. 12, but Vanderbilt beat LSU in the penalty kicks at the SEC Championship Game Nov. 9.

Vanderbilt and LSU are scheduled to start at 2 p.m. CT Monday afternoon.