Claire Lynch scored the game-winner in the 86th minute Sunday to give the Lobos a 2-1 Senior Day win over Wyoming.
“I can’t imagine anything better. We went down, but our team physically didn’t go down mentally,” senior midfielder Alexis Leyba said. “To score in the last five minutes of the game is unreal and I will never, ever forget that.”
The Cowgirls wasted no time scoring a goal in the match at the Lobo Soccer Complex. Wyoming forward Kayla Cryer scored a goal four minutes in when she took a shot from outside the box that got past junior goalie Cassie Ulrich.
The Lobos (8-5-2, 6-2-2 Mountain West) saw multiple shots saved by the Wyoming goalie. Junior midfielder Dylann O’Connor had a shot saved in which she received a through ball, leaving her one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
UNM racked up 12 total shots, four on goal, in the first half while the Cowgirls had a mere four shots, with one on goal.
The Lobos tied the game at one three minutes into the second half when redshirt junior forward Madisyn Olguin received a cross from redshirt freshman forward Quincy Slora and saw her shot sneak past the Wyoming goalie.
“She has been knocking on the door all season,” head coach Kit Vela said. “She’s been a little up and down in finding her rhythm; she found her rhythm. That’s the first ninety-minute game she’s played for us, and she was absolutely off the charts.”
The team kept up the pressure on the Cowgirls (10-8-1, 8-3-0 Mountain West) by shooting an additional 14 shots in the second half. Vela said she was proud of the way her team played from start to finish.
“I just thought we played with such an amazing attitude; you know, we were down one to nothing and outshooting them in the first half,” she said. “They’re a heck of a team.”
The Lobos had a flurry of shots midway through the second half, but none found the goal. Junior forward Lindsey Guice had one of her shots slip past the outside of the left post and one saved by the Wyoming keeper.
O’Connor got involved when she had a ball land at her feet and shot on an open goal, but the ball flew just outside the right post.
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The Lobos caught a break with just four minutes left in the game when Lynch dribbled past the goalkeeper and shot on a wide-open goal.
“It was so exciting,” she said. “I was just excited that we had scored, not necessarily that it was me, but with how many chances we had in the second half, we should have won.”
With the win, the Lobos are now in conference play, making them tied for second in the conference and clinching a spot in the Mountain West Conference Tournament.
The Lobos will face the San Diego State Aztecs on Friday in San Diego, California. This will be their last conference game before the tournament starts on Nov. 4.
Kyle Tomasi is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @KyTo22.
