The Eastern New Mexico women’s soccer program scored goals late in each half as the Hounds pitched a 2-0 shutout against Midwestern State the Friday afternoon before Homecoming at Greyhound Stadium.
Both teams played solid defense through the first 43 minutes as each team managed to muster just one shot on-goal.
However, the Hounds finally broke through in the 44th minute when sophomore midfielder Victoria Nuñez’s shot off a free kick was initially saved by MSU goalkeeper McKenna Williams. As the Mustangs defender tracked down the loose ball, her pass was intercepted by junior midfielder Samantha Fabela and she fired a shot from 20 yards out on the left side to take a 1-nil lead going into the half.
The Eastern defense only allowed the Mustangs to take two shots in the first 45 minutes with only one being placed on-goal. The Hounds finished the opening period with six total shots and three being placed on-net.
The second half saw more of a balanced effort by both teams at the Mustangs managed to put three more shots on-goal. The best opportunity for the Mustangs to score the equalizer came in the 59th minute as freshman goalkeeper Taylor Jackson made two saves in a 23-second stretch to keep MSU off the board.
At the 78:57 mark, the Hounds had a great opportunity to pad their lead, but a header by Nuñez in the box on a cross from the left side sailed just right of the goal.
In the waning seconds of the match, the Hounds sealed the victory with a goal at the 89:40 mark as senior mid Bailey Bosley found junior midfielder Julia Tucker in the middle of the field on a pass from the right side and her shot from 22 yards out found the left corner of the goal, just out of the reach of the keeper to make it a two-goal advantage.
Fabela’s first half goal was her second goal of the season, tying four other Greyhounds for the team-lead on the season. She is also currently tied with the team-lead in points with six.
Tucker’s second half goal was the first of her ENMU career and the assist by Bosley was her second on the season and her sixth point of the year, tying her with Fabela for the team-lead.
Jackson pitched her fifth shutout of the season while picking up four saves in the match, bringing her season total to 42 and raising her save percentage to 0.808 on the season.
The Hounds return to the pitch next week as they will travel to Denton, Texas on Oct. 19 to take on Texas Woman’s at 6 p.m. and will follow it up with an 11 a.m. match on Oct. 21 at Texas A&M-Commerce.
