There was no jet lag for the UNM women’s soccer team.
After their first conference loss of the season against Wyoming, the Lobos bounced back strong on Saturday against. Air Force.
The Lobos beat Air Force for the sixth consecutive time, 1-0, improving to 10-2-2 overall on the season.
Despite 24 fouls between the teams on Saturday, UNM came out victorious, with midfielder Rachel Fields scoring the lone goal against the Falcons off a rebound near the net in the 56th minute.
The Lobos’ defense held Air Force in check and limited the Falcons to just one shot on goal.
The difference between Saturday’s win and Thursday’s loss, head coach Kit Vela said, was luck and nerves.
“You know Wyoming didn’t really do anything to win that game,” Vela said. “We gave them opportunities, and we need to not do that. We hadn’t in nonconference, so I think it (was) more nerves.”
Some of those nerves carried over to the first half of Saturday’s game, said Fields.
Vela said the Lobos played well against Air Force but need to come out with more intensity.
“We need to clean up the details,” Vela said. “But some of it is out of our control when the referee is calling soft fouls. It’s hard to get a rhythm when they’re just launching balls back at you.”
With the win, the Lobos reached 10 wins for the first time since 2002.
“I know that this year, this team has shown great character through tough situations,” Fields said. “We are a team all together — we’re not just individuals. That makes us better. The first half, we’re still getting our nerves together. It was a great team effort.”
Freshman goalkeeper Kelli Cornell played a big role in Saturday’s shutout, recording her ninth shutout this season, which puts her in a tie for second in school history for most shutouts in a season.
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Cornell said the Lobo front line made her job easier.
“I have big shoes to fill. I just want to help the team win and help us be successful,” she said. “They’re just really strong, and we support each other and we have each other’s backs.”
Vela said she’s pleased with Cornell and the team’s progress.
“Kelli is a fantastic goalkeeper,” Vela said. “She just needs to be in these games to feel the pressure and emotions of it all. She has been outstanding. This is her redshirt freshman year, and she’s just learning the emotions of the game like everyone else.”
However, Vela said, while there is a learning curve, she wants the Lobos to adopt a killer instinct, something they lacked against Wyoming but fixed against Air Force.
“Not that Air Force has the name like a Texas — you can always get up for a Texas — but it’s harder to get up for an Air Force,” she said. “While they might not be as good a soccer team as a Texas, they’re going to be more emotional. There’s that conference desire.”
All that will come with time, Vela said.
“We’re really young,” she said. “We still have a lot of nerves — we showed that versus Wyoming. After we scored first, we let up and Wyoming took advantage of that. Tonight, we did a good job of staying focused and staying concentrated, but we’re really young and the emotions are what we’re trying to get used to.”
