Box Score (This match was later forfeited by UTPB).
ODESSA – The Wayland Baptist women's soccer team opened its season here Saturday afternoon against Texas-Permian Basin. While the Pioneers endured a 3-1 loss to the NCAA Division II Falcons, coach
Shiloh Posey came away encouraged with his club.
"It's a new team and we have a lot of learning and connecting and gelling to do," Posey said. "Overall we played OK. It was not our best, obviously, but it was a good opportunity for us to learn today.
"It's nothing we can't fix."
The Falcons (1-1) scored their first goal 3:15 into the match.
"We gave away a goal. We got caught flat-footed. It was a foot race and they won the foot race," Posey said.
"The first half was a bit of a struggle," he added. "We were a little bit scattered, and they outshot us quite a bit (14-4)."
It stayed 1-0 until midway through the second half when the Falcons scored on a header. Eight minutes later UTPB made it 3-0 when Deonna Green, who scored the first goal, scratched again when WBU goalkeeper
Erin Moon dropped the ball and Green poked it in.
The Pioneers avoided the shutout when newcomer Mega Attenborough scored on a penalty kick with 6½ minutes to go.
Posey said Wayland just missed another goal when
Shonte Tremblett took a pass from Attenborough and made a nice move diagonally across the box. She beat the Falcons' keeper but got crossed up.
Jazmin Zarate got a foot on it but a UTPB player came sliding across and knocked it off the backline just before it entered the goal.
"Today was a good learning lesson. It showed us areas where we still need a good amount of work," Posey said. "We did some good things, too, especially when we moved the ball around."
UTPB outshot Wayland, 23-8, with the Pioneers' shots coming from eight different players. Moon ended with 10 saves, including eight in the first half.
WBU plays its home-opener at 7 p.m. Monday against Lubbock Christian (1-0), which defeated UTPB in it season-opener earlier this week, 4-0. The Lady Chaps played at Colorado State-Pueblo on Saturday afternoon.
"We're going to have to play well," Posey said. "We have to step up fast and learn quickly. We'll do our best to implement what we saw today and make those corrections. We can't drag our feet."
