Gallery: (3-23-2021) Men's Soccer vs. USAO
LUBBOCK – After a month on the sidelines, senior
Hector Romero returned from injury and recorded the game-winning goal Tuesday afternoon in the Wayland Baptist men's soccer team's 1-0 Sooner Athletic Conference win over the University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma.
"I wouldn't call today's performance our best, but I'm proud of my guys for grinding out the win," Wayland coach
Robert Ssejjemba said.
Romero, whose season got off to an incredible start with 12 goals in Wayland's first six matches, sat out Wayland's last six games. The senior still is not at full strength, playing on a limited basis Tuesday against the Drovers at Berl Huffman Soccer Complex, but he made an obvious impact by netting the lone goal.
"Hector made a massive impact for us in the short time he was on the pitch," Ssejjemba said. "He gave us good hold-up and link-up, something we had been missing lately. We wanted to ease him back into playing speed, but he grabbed the winner instead."
The season-high fourth straight win for Wayland moved the Pioneers (10-4-1, 5-2-1 SAC) into third place in the league standings. USAO 7-4-3, 3-3-1) fell to sixth.
Romero came off the bench to take three of WBU's 14 shots.
Marco Magnoli also fired three shots and had the only other on-goal attempt for Wayland.
USAO also had two on-target shots among its eight attempts. WBU keeper
Elias Zamora snared them both.
"We knew USAO was going to be physical and would try to get numbers in our box. Our first half was not very memorable because we were not clean enough on the ball and we gave them too much space to play. We forced ourselves into unnecessary defending situations," Ssejjemba said.
"In the second half we increased our speed of play and limited their playing space, but in a game like this going back and forth, it was going to be decided by a moment of brilliance, which Hector gave us."
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It was Wayland's second win of the season over USAO, having won in Chickasha, Okla., in a non-conference match Nov. 6, 2-1 in double-overtime. After owning just one win over the Drovers in their first 11 meetings, Wayland has won the last two match-ups
The Pioneers, who honored their senior members prior to Tuesday's match, end the regular-season on Saturday in Bethany, Okla., in a 2 p.m. match against first-place, undefeated Southwestern Christian (11-0-3, 7-0-1). The Eagles, ranked the equivalent of 30
th in the NAIA, edged Mid-America Christian on Tuesday in Oklahoma City, 1-0.
The Pioneers are assured of hosting a first-round match in the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament. The top four seeds in the tourney host lower seeded teams Friday, April 2.
