RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros women's soccer team captured its first Western Athletic Conference (WAC) victory of the season, 1-0, over the Abilene Christian University (ACU) Wildcats on Thursday at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
Sophomore forward
Amy Hislop scored the lone UTRGV (3-11-3, 1-6-3 WAC) goal. Freshman keeper
Emma Lööv made one save on nine shots faced. ACU (4-9-4, 0-7-3 WAC) keeper
Lily Foster made four saves.
The Vaqueros played aggressively on offense and defense from the first whistle. Redshirt junior midfielder
Cami Dade led the offensive effort, taking three of UTRGV's six first-half shots. Dade, sophomore defender
Nadia Colon and Hislop put a lot of pressure on the Wildcats in UTRGV's offensive third.
In the 27
th minute, Colon intercepted an ACU throw-in and sent the ball into the offensive third. There, Hislop took control and showcased elite dribbling skills to beat a defender, then snuck a rocket shot into a tiny gap between the post and the hands of ACU's diving keeper to put UTRGV up 1-0.
The Vaqueros put three shots on goal in the first half, including one from Seppala in the 44
th minute. ACU took four shots in the first half, but none were on target. Colon, sophomore defender
Libby Beilfuss and senior forward
Jeweleen Reuille aided the strong defensive play. Reuille blocked a shot to stymie a good chance for ACU early in the first half on back-to-back corner kicks.
ACU was the aggressor in the second half, but the Wildcats' shots continued to be off target and UTRGV's defense held strong. Dade and freshman midfielder
Alaina Granger came up with big moments in ACU's offensive third to stop scoring chances. The Wildcats took four second-half shots and sent only one on goal, but Lööv was up for the challenge. She made a diving save on a close-range shot in the 84
th minute.
UTRGV continued to play hard even with a lead in the second half. They put two shots on goal and found the extra effort needed late in the match to hustle and maintain the clean sheet to secure their first WAC victory.
The Vaqueros will play their season finale on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. against Tarleton at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
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