Dominating in every stat does not always lead to victory.
The UNM women’s soccer team tied Saint Mary’s 1-1 in overtime on Friday after controlling much of the game and out-shooting the Gaels 26-16 in its regular season opener.
“I thought the energy, for the most part, was good and we played well,” head coach Kit Vela said. “After we scored the first goal we thought that it was just going to happen for us but it didn’t.”
The Lobos found themselves in the lead after just 8 minutes.
Reigning MWC offensive player of the year Jennifer Williams beat a Saint Mary’s defender to the ball off a pass from senior Jael Fanning, and slotted it under the onrushing goalkeeper.
For most of the game, the Lobos kept possession and Saint Mary’s looked to break on the counter attack.
In the 37th minute, against the run of play, Saint Mary’s found a tying goal. A long ball from Jordan Marada found Sara Ives 20 yards from goal, and she hit a perfectly placed volley past the diving Kelli Cornell off the far post and in, to tie the game at one.
“Today’s game was a battle,” Williams said. “We fought hard all the way to the end. We had the early goal and kind of settled in. We tried to get a second goal, but unfortunately we did not get the outcome we wanted.”
The second half was much of the same, as the Lobos kept up the momentum but could not find the back of the net.
Midway through the half, junior Rachel Montoya had a shot go off the post. It seemed nothing was going in for the Lobos.
With 8 minutes left, Lobo senior Roxie McFarland beat two defenders and looked as if she was going to score, but Gael goalkeeper Kate Brenot blocked her shot.
McFarland had the chance to win it in the last minute, but her shot again failed to beat Brenot.
With the scores tied, the game went to two 10-minute overtimes.
The first overtime was uneventful, with only one shot on goal registered. But the second overtime period came to life.
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The Lobos and the Gaels both had chances to win the game, with Williams coming close in the first minute.
Marada then found herself open and tested Cornell from a tough angle, but could not find a winner for Saint Mary’s.
The save led to a quick counter attack, in which Williams should have won the game. She failed to score, however, and the story was the same with five minutes left when her header off a free kick didn’t make it in the goal.
“We were too hungry tonight,” Vela said. “It’s good to be hungry, but it just didn’t work for us tonight. Saint Mary’s is a good team and they countered well, and it’s a good preparation for a long season.”
UNM beat Cal State Bakersfield on Sunday, scoring 4-0 with first-half goals from Williams and Montoya, and second-half strikes from Amanda Collins and Brianna Martinez.
