RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's soccer team dropped a Southland Conference (SLC) match Sunday, 1-0, to the Southeastern (SLU) Lions at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
Southeastern (2-4-2, 1-0 SLC) was the aggressor early in the first half, but UTRGV's defense was sharp from the first whistle. Junior goalkeeper
Emilia Compian stood tall against an offensive rush, making a save on a cross in the 17
thminute and a diving save in the 19
th. The Lions took five shots in the first half and had one blocked.
The Vaqueros (3-6-1, 0-2 SLC) picked up the offensive pressure as the half rolled on, taking three shots in the last 25 minutes of the frame. Sophomore midfielder
Rubi Ortiz and sophomore forward
Lisa Elowsson had UTRGV generating chances in its offensive third. Sophomore defender/midfielder
Erika Parker put a shot on goal in the 33
rd minute which was saved by SLU's
Kendall Curran. The Vaqueros got the only two corners of the first half out of their offensive push, but the match remained scoreless at the break.
The Lions started the second half fast, too, taking four shots in the initial 20 minutes. After not getting a corner in the first half, SLU got four in a hurry as they turned up the tempo in their offensive third from the 52
nd minute to the 57
th. Compian and senior defender
Libbie Mayfield anchored UTRGV's defense to withstand the challenge.
Freshman defender
Malaika Dadabhoy put a shot on goal in the 66
th minute, but Curran tabbed the save. Southeastern rushed back up the pitch and used sharp passing to catch the defense on its heels, leading to a goal by
Emma Ramsey in the 68
th minute for the 1-0 lead.
UTRGV kept its legs fresh as it made a final push for the equalizer in the last 10 minutes of the match. Junior midfielder
Olivia Smith had a shot on goal in the 83
rd minute but Curran made the save. Compian recorded her fifth save of the match in the 88
th minute.
Up next for the Vaqueros is a match at Stephen F. Austin on Sept. 28 at 1 p.m.
Support UTRGV Women's Soccer |
Become a Fan on Facebook |
Follow us on Twitter |
Follow us on Instagram |
Follow us on YouTube