COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's soccer welcomed first-place Regis University on Thursday night and handed the Rangers their first conference loss of the season as the Mountain Lions powered their way to a 2-0 clean sheet victory. The shutout also gave UCCS keeper
Alexis Walker the single season program record with nine clean sheets on the season.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: RU 0, UCCS 2
Records: UCCS (10-2-4, 7-1-2 RMAC), RU (10-5-2, 9-1-1 RMAC)
Location: Mountain Lion Stadium | Colorado Springs, Colo.
Series: The Mountain Lions trail Regis in the all-time series, 7-10, but now own a six-game winning streak against the Rangers.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• The Mountain Lions made their presence known against the number one team in the RMAC early on by owning the match's first four shots. All four came within the first 10 minutes as
Gabriella Lancaster tallied up three of the shots while UCCS continued to keep the Rangers' pinned back on their side of the pitch.
• UCCS got off three more shots before
Jael Larson made the stadium erupt with the 1-0 advantage over Regis. In the 33
rd minute, the Mountain Lions were marching down the pitch and gathered near the top of the box where
Makayla Merlo fielded a pass from
Annie Louthan and dotted the right post. A redirected ball worked itself in front of Larson who put it back into net for her third goal of the season at 33:01.
• The one goal would be all that the UCCS defense needed as
Jade Kinsey,
Zoe Sims and the rest of the backline went to work by allowing one Ranger shot after the goal to take a 1-0 advantage into halftime.
• In the second half, Regis came out swinging by generating some offensive momentum of their own with a shot on goal in the 55
th minute, but
Alexis Walker kept the shot out of frame as minutes later UCCS flipped the field. The Mountain Lions managed to draw a penalty kick at 65:05 and aimed to double CCU's deficit but just missed as
Makayla Merlo sent a missile above the top woodwork, keeping the score at 1-0.
• UCCS worked offensive momentum back in their favor once again as
Jadyn LeDoux threaded a through ball into the box where
Kaitlin Hinkle received the ball and took on the CCU defender one-on-one. Hinkle showed off her dribbling skills and came out on top with a well-placed ball in the right side of the net to extend the Mountain Lions' lead, 2-0, in the 82
nd minute.
• The remaining minutes would only come to see one more Ranger shot after the Mountain Lions dominated possession to solidify the 2-0 clean sheet.
STATS FROM THE DAY:
• Regis struggled to have an answer for the Mountain Lions as UCCS more than doubled Regis' shots, 27-11. UCCS also doubled RU's shots on goal, 6-3, and tripled the Rangers' corner kicks, 9-3.
• Seven different Mountain Lions notched more than one shot in the contest as
Sydney Lasater paced the team at five shots with
Gabriella Lancaster and
Makayla Merlo each adding four shots of their own.
• Jadyn Ledoux came off the bench to record a game-high two shots on goal.
• Jade Kinsey,
Zoe Sims,
Annie Louthan,
Makayla Merlo, and
Makenna Fowler dispossessed the Rangers from beginning to end by logging a full 90 minutes.
• Alexis Walker maintains the conference lead in shutouts by moving up to nine on the season as she also collected three saves and improves to 10-2-4.
BEYOND THE BOX:
• Alexis Walker made program history Thursday night by setting the single season record for clean sheets (nine).
• Jael Larson nets her first game-winning goal as a Mountain Lion.
• Sydney Lasater registers her third game of the season with five or more shots.
•The Mountain Lions have clinched their RMAC Tournament berth and are currently in the hunt for a home quarterfinal match as the third-place team with two matches left in the regular season.
• Gabriella Lancaster ties her career high in shots (four).
UP NEXT
UCCS Women's Soccer now looks to Sunday, Oct. 23 for their final home match of the regular season as the Mountain Lions take on Colorado Christian University at 1 p.m. for Senior Day.
SOCIAL:
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
