WAXAHACHIE – Four second-half goals rallied the Wayland Baptist women's soccer team to a 5-3 Sooner Athletic Conference victory over Southwestern Assemblies of God University here Tuesday afternoon.
"We pushed and we pushed hard and were able to get the result we needed," Wayland coach
Shiloh Posey said. "Our girls did a good job of continuing to battle.
"It's nice to come home with a win."
The Pioneers (5-1-2, 2-0-1 SAC) took a 1-0 lead when senior
Megan Attenborough, seeing her first action after a 2½-week injury layoff, scored her fourth goal of the year 15 minutes into the match.
SAGU (2-8, 0-3) then put in the next three goals – all within about a six-minute span late in the first half – to assume a 3-1 lead at the break.
Posey said it was a discouraging first half.
"We had six or seven chances to score, but it was one of those days where the goalkeeper gets a toe on it or you sky it over the bar. We also got called offside 10 or 12 times and got three goals called back because of that," the coach said.
Defensively, he added, "two plays cost us two goals, so we were down 3-1. We were missing our opportunities and they were taking advantage of theirs. Some things were out-of-sorts, but at halftime we were able to talk through some of those things."
Posey said the Lady Lions' back line was "well-versed in offsides trap. I give a lot of credit to SAGU for that." But the Pioneers adjusted in the second half.
"We talked at halftime about turning the ball loose quicker at midfield so we didn't get caught offsides," Posey said. "The girls concentrated and got after things and did a god job of responding in the second half."
Did they ever!
Senior
Taylor Moore, assisted by sophomore
Kayla Ortiz, notched the first of Wayland's four second-half goals 11 minutes after the break. In the 63
rd minute, freshman
Aryial Garcia recorded the equalizer when she notched her first collegiate goal, assisted by junior
Mayra Sosa.
Moore got the game-winner when she found the back of the net in the 71
st minute. It was her team-high ninth goal of the season.
Just over five minutes after that,
Allison Alvarez-Garcia scored her first goal of the season, and second of her career, to give WBU some insurance. Fellow sophomore
Vitoria Alves-Balieiro assisted.
First-year soccer player
Maci Merket, a former basketball all-American for the Flying Queens, earned her first win in goal, after entering the match at halftime and not allowing a goal. She recorded one save.
Wayland outshot SAGU, 28-11, including 16-6 in shots on-goal. Moore blasted 11 shots, just one off the school record set by
Emarie Holland in 2013. Five of Moore's shots were on-target. Attenborough got off eight shots, all but two of which were on-goal.
In addition to the changes they made at halftime, Posey contributed the comeback win to the support provided by the players on the sideline.
"The girls on the bench were a great cheering section. They were loud and boisterous. It was enjoyable to watch them encourage their teammates on the field. I think it turned the day for us.
"Everybody played and contributed, on the field and the sidelines too."
The win improved Wayland to 8-1 all-time against SAGU and kept the Pioneers in second place in the conference, behind 3-0 Texas Wesleyan and just ahead of No. 11 John Brown and Oklahoma City, both 2-0 in the league.
The Pioneers return home to host Central Christian, Kan. (4-5, 0-2) at 5 p.m. Saturday, after the men's 3 p.m. match. The Tigers, who defeated Wayland in Kansas last season, 3-2, play Wednesday at Southwestern Christian.
Central Christian has fallen in SAC play to John Brown on the road, 9-0, and Mid-America Christian at home, 4-3. Wayland tied MACU, 1-1 in double-overtime, a week ago in Plainview.
