MSU Denver junior defenderBrittany Cito in the 2-1 win at Colorado School of Mines Sept. 21. Photo by Timothy Hurst
Women’s soccer team went undefeated this weekend, beating the Colorado School of Mines and Colorado State University of Pueblo with defensive performances. They improved their overall record to 5-3-1.
The Roadrunners beat Colorado School of Mines 2-1 Sept. 21 at CSM soccer stadium, winning on the road against the best offensive team in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, holding the Orediggers to only one goal in the first half with an impressive defensive show.
The game started with intensity by both teams, but the Roadrunners were a step ahead of the Orediggers and six minutes into the game, junior forward/midfielder Tess Hagenlock fired a shot from the top of the box over the heads of defenders and past the goalie.
“It was a great build-up for them,” head coach Adrianne Almarez said. “Tess had a great game tonight and it was probably one of the top goals we’ll see all season.”
After that first goal, both teams matched up pretty well. The Roadrunners were aggressive offensively, but the Orediggers matched them defensively and both teams had a lot of opportunities to score.
Oredigger’s Anna Evans capitalized on the weak Roadrunner defense and scored to tie the game 1-1 ending the first half.
The second half was a battle.
“We knew we needed another goal, so we just kept our momentum,” senior defender Hayley Renko said. “We told each other we have to work for each other, and we had to get that second goal no matter what it took.”
Fifteen minutes into the second half, the Roadrunners got the break they were looking for. A beautiful shot by sophomore forward Brandi Farley gave the Roadrunners the lead.
The Roadrunners locked the Orediggers down defensively to protect their lead. The Orediggers nearly scored within seconds before the game’s end, but senior goalkeeper Jordan Simkins fell on the ball to preserve the win.
“Our defense did a great job today,” Farley said. “We started pulling people back toward the end and we were just super solid.”
“It was huge,” Almarez said. “I think it was important for us to get this result, and I think we grew up a lot as a team tonight.”
Two days later, when the Roadrunners hit the pitch against CSU-Pueblo, they had their mind set on one thing.
“We wanted to have another victory,” Farley said.
The Roadrunners shut out the ThunderWolves 3-0 Sept. 23 at Auraria Field.
The Roadrunners bombarded CSU-Pueblo goalie Savannah Thompson with shot after shot and couldn’t contain the ’Runners offense.
“It feels good because we’re contending with some of the top teams in the RMAC that had a really good preseason,” senior Kelci Newlin said. “We just want to keep building from there, working on getting into the tournament, cause that’s always a goal.”
The lady Roadrunners started the game with great defense, dominating the field from the start and kept the pressure on CSU-Pueblo all game. The Roadrunners came into the game with a lot more confidence than the (1-4) ThunderWolves, and it showed.
Fifteen minutes into the game, the Roadrunners scored their first goal when midfielder Becca Medina set Farley up for a one-on-one situation with the goalie. She shook the goalie and scored to put the Roadrunners up. This first goal gave Metro a lot of momentum as they rode it into the second half. With great teamwork, they broke down CSU-Pueblo’s defense and fired shots at the goalie all night.
Pueblo’s goalkeeper didn’t get a break the entire game. CSU-Pueblo had no idea how to stop the Roadrunners offensive onslaught. Eleven minutes before the first half ended, junior forward Maggie Rojas got the Roadrunners another goal. She made an amazing shot from the right side of the box. The shot made the score two to zero, and Metro finished out the half with great defense.
The Roadrunners were just as dominant in the second half as in the first. They didn’t let down an inch. The Thunder Wolves struggled to get the ball across midfield. Metro was close to shutting them out.
With 4:29 left on the clock, Karisa Price scored off a pass by Newlin for the win.
“Finally a shutout! It’s about time,” Newlin said. “Our defense has been working hard and it seems like we’re finally getting our system down to stop those goals.”
Almarez was pleased.
“I think that we came out here and we played,” Almarez said. “When we had the ball, our feet can do some very good things and we continued to do that for the whole game.”
No comments yet.