As center referee I wouldn't normally post a response here, but as I retired from high school officiating with this match and have returned to civilian life, I don't see the harm of answering.
I have been provided a tape of this very exciting and skillful match (and had a chance to watch that amazing save by the BGA keeper several times). Referees know the angle of sight into play is critical-- the camera for this tape was located at the top of the stands about ten yards to the right of the halfway line as you look down on the field. On the penalty the tape shows in slow motion exactly what I saw: the ball is struck at pace by the BGA player and the Baylor defender just inside the penalty area raises her lower arm (upper arm does not move), rotates her hand toward the ball, and arrests its flight with her open palm. There was no question that it was 'hand to ball', as we say. If there was any doubt the Baylor defender erased it by protesting to me, "Ref, I was just protecting my face!"
The ball, needless to say, was nowhere near her face and was not in fact going to touch her until she handled it.
So what was going on? A cynical attempt to stop a shot and pass it off as accidental? I very much doubt it. It was, I would guess, pure instinct. The ball is struck very hard, seems to be coming right at you, you instinctively raise your hand to fend it off. High school rules require that a penalty be given in any such circumstance, but most of us will let it go as trivial if the ball's flight will be arrested anyway by striking your nose, chest, lower abdomen, etc. This is indeed just protecting yourself. Unfortunately in this case the ball was going just past the defender and her upraised hand caught it.
This play would have been very difficult to pick up from the stands as the play took place in an instant and the defender's hand was the one away from the stands. Watching the tape from the camera's position in the stands without slow motion gives a good idea why a spectator would think that the ball merely struck a defender's motionless hand.
