RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros women's soccer team played to a 1-1 draw in a Western Athletic Conference (WAC) match Sunday against the Sam Houston State (SHSU) Bearkats at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
UTRGV (2-8-1, 0-3-1 WAC) senior midfielder
Ana Recarte-Pacheco recorded the goal. Freshman keeper
Emma Lööv made three saves on 15 shots faced. SHSU (1-6-2, 0-3-1 WAC) got on the board courtesy of
Kailey Pena and had one save from keeper
Savannah Hall.
The match was even at 1-1 after a balanced first half. SHSU took eight shots to UTRGV's five, and both teams sent two on goal. Despite a fairly physical half that saw both teams apply consistent offensive pressure, only three corners were awarded and six fouls committed.
The Bearkats took a 1-0 lead in the 18
th minute as two Vaqueros, including Lööv, collided at the top of the box trying to stop a fast attack. Pena got the shot off before impact and the ball rolled into the net.
Recarte-Pacheco, UTRGV's sparkplug, tied the match at 1-1 in the 28
th minute. Sophomore midfielder
Molly Reynosa drove the Vaqueros quickly into their offensive third and sent an attempt to the net, but it was kicked away softly by a SHSU player. Recarte-Pacheco charged in for the rebound and sharply sent the ball in for the goal.
Redshirt junior midfielder
Elina Seppälä, senior forward
Jeweleen Reuille, sophomore defender
Sydney Hammondand freshman forward
Caitlin Webster made an impact to keep UTRGV's offense attacking. freshman defender
Rosey Bjorgvinsdottir, sophomore defender
Nadia Colon and sophomore defender
Libby Beilfuss kept the aggressive Bearkats offense contained. Lööv made a save in the 26
th minute, diving to her right to punch a shot away.
Sam Houston came out strong in the second half and sent two shots on goal in the first five minutes of play. Lööv wrangled both attempts, the first from
Lexi Primacio and the second from
Jasmine Marquez, at close range to keep the match even.
The Vaqueros battled in the second half. Bjorgvinsdottir, Reynosa and Colon helped UTRGV keep SHSU off the board despite outshooting the home team 7-3 in the final 45 minutes. Beilfuss made a great defensive play on a Bearkats attack in the final five minutes of action. Hammond led a commendable offensive effort to pick up a winning goal for the Vaqueros, but the match ended in a draw.
The Vaqueros are back at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex on Friday at 4 p.m. against Grand Canyon.
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