Breann Lujan-Halcon
blujanha@uwyo.edu
Cowgirl soccer swept Sunday’s spring tournament games, winning 2-1 over South Dakota and 1-0 versus Western Colorado State in the Indoor Practice Facility.
“We didn’t give up a goal last time we played,” said Wyoming head coach Pete Cuadrado. “But we didn’t score a lot either, we only scored one in two games. To come out here and get three goals today was definitely a lot better performance. We’re trying to get people comfortable with where they’re playing and I’m pretty happy with a lot of them and how they’ve performed. We’re getting ready to get on the road and we’re going to Utah so expect nothing but the same from them.”
The first half of regulation in game one of the tournament ended in a tie, one-to-one. South Dakota pushed a hard run game early and the Pokes countered with tight passing, allowing them to retain possession for the bulk of the half.
South Dakota junior midfielder Shannon Keller gave the Coyotes their only advantage of the game with a floater with 27 minutes left in the first. The lead was quickly cut by Cowgirls freshman forward Laurel Ramer with a game-tying goal at 15 minutes left in the half.
In the second half South Dakota played a defensive game, often keeping all of their players on one side of the field. Even under the defensive strain, Wyoming was still able to deliver.
A Cowgirls corner kick taken by Laurel Ramer gave the Cowgirls the upper hand. Sophomore midfielder Mollee Ramsay received the ball and headed it in for the game-winning point.
In game two, Wyoming faced Western Colorado. Junior forward Kasey Curtis had three shots on goal in the first half before landing the only goal of the game, putting Wyoming up 1-0.
“Western is a good physical team,” said Cuadrado.” “To be able to settle the ball in the second half and start opening up space was a big difference in the game. I think the second half we really put our foot in the game, the first half was pretty much a dog fight.”
The last five minutes of game time was a defensive scramble by Western. Wyoming continued crashing the goal until the buzzer blew.
“We’ve improved so much this whole spring,” said Curtis. “We’ve been working hard. It’s a great step forward for us. We’re focusing on finishing because we’ve worked well with building up; we just need that finished project.”
Sunday’s lineup was similar to the lineup the Cowgirls played in their early March tournament. Curtis, who spent last season at center back, was put at forward at the beginning of this season and has become a force for UW’s offense.
The Cowgirls will be travelling to Salt Lake City on Saturday where they will face Utah Valley and Utah. The first game kicks off at 11:45 am.
