|
Last Updated: Oct 16th, 2008 - 13:33:17 |
Metro midfielder Tyler Hambrick
slotted one of four goals in the No.
25-ranked Roadrunners Sept. 12
game against Seattle Pacific, but his
big goal of the weekend was two days
later at School of Mines, blasting the
winning goal in the 89th minute to
snatch a 2-1 win over their No. 17-
ranked rival.
"Tyler Hambrick was the hero on
Sunday," Metro head coach Ken Parsons
said. "That's the history with us
at Mines -- we only get a slim lead and
then, at a bad time, let them back in
the game."
Until the 86th minute, Hambrick's
last second heroics wouldn't have been
needed with Ryan Vickery pitching a
shutout. The defense had only allowed
the Orediggers two shots on goal and
Metro was just a few minutes from a
1-0 win. Then the home team decided
to make things interesting.
"That late in the game we're exhausted;
we're up; we don't want to
go into overtime," Metro midfielder
Kellen Johnson said.
Metro women's soccer team
opened up the Rocky Mountain Athletic
Conference weekend 1-0-1 Sept.
12 and 14, against New Mexico Highlands
and Colorado School of Mines.
Game one was an easy victory for
the Roadrunners in Las Vegas, N.M.
Midfielder Madison McQuilliams began
the scoring, as she tallied her first
goal of the season after just 10 minutes
of play.
"She's playing stronger every
single game," head coach Adrianne
Almaraz said. "She's doing what we
need her to do."
In the second half, Metro continued
to dominate, scoring two more
goals, including an assist from defender
and captain Nicole Cito. The
Roadrunners finished the match with
a 3-0 win.
"Overall she's been solid," Almaraz
said.
"She plays with a lot of heart and
passion, a good leader on the field.
She never gives up, and continuously
encourages the rest of the players to
do the same."
Sunday's game was a different
story for the Roadrunners against
Colorado School of Mines in Golden,
as the game went into double overtime
with no decision.
Not only was Metro not able to
score, they also walked off the field at
the end of the game with five cards,
three yellow and two red.
Midfielder Vanessa Mais received
a yellow card late in the first half, and
again in the second half, leaving her
team with a player down on the field.
Forward Becca Mays picked up a yellow
card late in the second half, and
another in the second overtime, giving
the Roadrunners only nine players
on the field. Defender Courtney
Ryan collected a yellow card late in
the second half. The referees called a
number of fouls in the game, but Cito
feels she can't blame the game's outcome
on the referee.
"It is hard, but you just have to
remember you're here to play soccer
and take care of business," Cito said.
"You can't depend on the ref; you
just have to stick with your game."
Even though the Roadrunners were
faster up and down the line, possessed
better passing skills and took more
shots in regulation, it wasn't enough to
get the ball past Mines goalkeeper Briana
Schulze. Metro attempted 10 shots
in regulation, over Mines' four shots.
"We came into it knowing it
would be a battle," Almaraz said.
"Mines is a good team, they are
hard to score on, and they get numbers
back. Playing on turf, it's fast,
and we knew we would only get so
many opportunities. We weren't able
to convert and be dangerous enough
on attack," she said.
Even though Metro was down
two players at one point during the
match, they were still able to come
back on defense and guide goalkeeper
Becca Maloney in the backfield.
Mines had six shots on goal in overtime,
while Metro only shot three.
The score was left at 0-0.
"It was a battle, and we knew it
was going to be when we started," Mc-
Quilliams said. "We tried our hardest,
but we just got unlucky. We had good
chances; we just got to finish."
The Roadrunners are now 1-0-1
in the RMAC and 4-1-2 overall. They
will travel to UC-Colorado Springs and
Regis University, Sept. 19 and 21.
When comparing last year's team
to this year's team, Cito believes this
season will be a success.
"I think as a whole we're much
better -- a lot more talent this year
than last year. It's just a matter of
finding it within each other," Cito
said.
|
|
|
