DALLAS, Texas – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's soccer team fought back with two second half goals to eliminate St. Mary's University and advance to the second round of the 2023 NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship.
INSIDE THE MATCH UP
Final: UCCS 2, STMU 1
Records: UCCS 13-4-3 (10-1-1 RMAC), STMU 11-6-5 (8-3-1 LSC)
Location: DBU Patriot Soccer Field | Dallas, Texas
Series: UCCS leads the Rattlers 1-0-1 in two match ups between the programs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UCCS began the game with the upper-hand, holding possession for most of the first 45 minutes of play. The Mountain Lions earned their chances with several grade A scoring opportunities in the first 15 minutes of play, but Rattler's goalkeeper Rebecca Difronzo was on her game, and kept the Mountain Lions out of the net in the first frame.
- St. Mary's couldn't sustain offense in the first half, but in the limited time they had possession, they took advantage. As the 28th minute arrived, the Rattlers were able to work the ball to the front of the Mountain Lion's net off a corner kick, Natalie Gonzalez would touch it towards frame where it would deflect off UCCS goalkeeper Isabella Whitmore and roll ever so slowly towards the goal line. As it crept over the paint, UCCS defender Leikela Lunt would find the clearance opportunity, but it would hit Whitmore who was trying to recover, and trickle in for the first goal of the match. The score would hold at 1-0 into the half and St. Mary's would take the lead to the locker room at the break.
- The Mountain Lions would make necessary adjustments during the intermission, as they brought out a heightened urgency from the locker room. The Mountain Lions lived in Rattlers' half in the second period of play, with UCCS bombarding 14 shots toward the St. Mary's cage.
- 21 minutes into the second half, Sydney Lasater would finally breakthrough for UCCS. After the Mountain Lions earned the corner kick, Hazel Wright served it straight to the head of Sydney Lasater who redirected it off the bottom of the crossbar and in to equalize for UCCS.
- With the game tied at one, the Mountain Lions didn't come off the throttle. The Rattlers came out of their defensive shell now needing a goal, but UCCS owned all the momentum, and it would pay off just nine minutes later.
- With 14:17 to play, Taylynn Levi drove her way in and passed it to space in front of the left post of St. Mary's, Rattler's right-back Maggie Wirebaugh would be there to intercept, but UCCS forward Emily Aguilar was quickly on scene. Aguilar would cleanly win the ball from Wirebaugh and tap it home, giving UCCS the lead at 2-1 and complete the comeback for the Mountain Lions.
- UCCS played an effective game of keep-away for the final fourteen minutes, and narrowly missed adding a third goal with Sydney Lasater trying to find the brace, but the 2-1 score would hold, seeing UCCS eliminate St. Mary's and advance to the second round.
STATS FROM THE DAY
- The Mountain Lions shelled the Rattlers, with UCCS out shooting STMU 20-6 with eight UCCS shots landing on frame with STMU only having 4 on target.
- Five Mountain Lions played for 90 minutes with Jade Kinsey, Abby Barhydt, Sela Freeman, Hazel Wright, and Makayla Merlo all playing the entire match.
- Junior Sydney Lasater would fire 6 shots, matching the total for all Rattler attackers.
- Physicallity was evenly spread throughout this game with St. Mary's edging out UCCS in fouls 7-6.
BEYOND THE BOX
- Jade Kinsey becomes the all-time leader for minutes played in UCCS Women's Soccer history with 5,876 minutes in a UCCS uniform.
- The Mountain Lions have advanced to the second round in the last six NCAA tournaments dating back to 2016. (2020 season the NCAA tournament was cancelled.)
- Head Coach J. B. Belzer improves to 9-10-2 in his NCAA Playoff career, with 2023 being his 13th appearance in the national tournament.
- UCCS wins their first neutral site match of 2023, St. Mary's finishes with a 1-1-1 record in neutral site competitions.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will face the number one seed in the South-Central Region Semifinal on Saturday at 4 p.m. (MT).
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 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
