Sports
'Runners dominate RMAC adversaries
Women's soccer wins two matches, remains nation's No. 1 ranked team
By Jeremy Johnson
jjohn308@mscd.edu
The Metro women's soccer team posted two more Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference wins over the weekend.
Their new season records are 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the RMAC this season.
The Roadrunners began the weekend sweep by ousting previously undefeated Fort Lewis 4-2 at Auraria Field on Friday. The Lady Skyhawks drop to 6-1-1 overall and 3-1 in the RMAC.
The two goals given up by the 'Runners were the first of the season and the first of the year for red shirt freshman goalkeeper Rachel Zollner.
Photo by Adrian DiUbaldo adiubald@mscd.edu
Metro freshman Anne Ormrod maneuvers the ball during the game against Fort Lewis Friday, Sept. 16. Ormrod scored one goal for Metro, which won 4-2.
"I don't mind giving up the one goal," Zollner said. "I'd rather have my streak end in a game we win than a game in which we lose 1-0."
"It's really the second (goal) that I'm not happy about," Zollner said. "Two unanswered goals, I'm not okay with that."
The last team to score on Metro in the regular season was Regis University on Oct. 27, 2004.
Still, the win did the trick in keeping the 'Runners ranked No. 1 overall.
Metro scored early when team captain and senior forward Amy Leichliter drove a Jamie Gwinner assist home for a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.
"Getting a win from (Fort Lewis) and giving them their first loss of the year just means that they're going to come after us harder next time," Leichliter said.
The goal opened up the floodgates for the 'Runners, who would go into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
Freshman forward Anne Ormrod sped past a defender in the 20th minute on Kylee Hanavan's assist up the field for the goal.
Hanavan scored just three minutes later on a through-pass from Leichliter.
Hanavan rounded out her day with another goal in the 32nd minute to give Metro a comfortable halftime lead.
"We came out well in the first half and we built ourselves a little bit of a cushion," head coach Danny Sanchez said, "so that even though they played well in the second half, we were able to stand up under pressure."
The first Fort Lewis goal came in the 65th minute, when Metro defensive back Gwinner received a red card for holding. The last-person-to-the-goal penalty ended with Gwinner's rejection from the game.
The result was a free kick that Fort Lewis midfielder Becky Gilmore curved in for the goal.
Gwinner missed Sunday's game against Mesa State, but promised to be ready when the Roadrunners take on Regis Wednesday.
With the 'Runners down a fullback, Gilmore was able to thread a pass to Ginny Maddox for the second goal of the game in the 83rd minute.
The late scoring would not turn out to be enough, however, to boost the Skyhawks past Metro.
"I think as a whole team we just let down a lot in the second half," Zollner said. "Being a man down hurt us and we struggled to figure it out and get everybody covered."
Metro managed to return to perfect defensive form and Zollner got back into her groove as the Roadrunners steamrolled Mesa State 8-0 at Auraria Field Sunday.
Junior forward Hanavan broke away in the tenth minute of the game with a pass from Ormrod for her eighth goal of the season. The 'Runners headed to the locker room with a quiet 1-0 lead.
Just seven minutes into the second half, Hanavan came back onto Auraria Field with fresh legs, burning by Mesa State defenders for her ninth goal of the season.
With a 2-0 lead, the 'Runners scored an amazing six goals in less than 40 minutes of remaining play. Ormrod scored her eighth goal of the season in the 55th minute. Ormrod scored her second goal off a penalty kick in the 75th minute. She and Hanavan are tied for a team-lead of nine goals each.
Leichliter scored her second goal of the weekend in the 80th minute and sophomore forward Katie Kilbey had her fourth goal of the year in the 85th minute.
Two players-junior midfielder Brooke Kiefer and senior forward Dominique Van Lieu-scored their first goals of the season for the rolling 'Runners.
"We're playing well," Leichliter said. "We're playing strong. I don't think we've played our best yet, but we're still playing good and we still have room for improvement."