Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
ENMU midfielders Emma Hafenbrak (15) and Sierra Villanueva attempt to cut off the angle for Oklahoma Christian senior midfielder Ellise Foreman during Wednesday's Lone Star Conference women's soccer match at Greyhound Stadium. The visiting Eagles took a 3-1 victory over the Greyhounds.
Early on, Eastern New Mexico University's men have put themselves in the heart of the Lone Star Conference soccer race.
Wednesday night, the Greyhounds had a chance to take a big step forward. Instead, they settled for a smaller step.
ENMU played Dallas Baptist to a 2-2 standoff at Greyhound Stadium, keeping the Hounds (4-5-4, 2-1-2 LSC) third in the 10-team conference. With the tie, ENMU now stands 9-1-1 all-time against the Patriots.
Second-year coach Brandon Misuraca hoped his team could get this one outright, with a trip to conference-leading and second-ranked Midwestern State (13-0-1, 5-0) scheduled for Saturday.
"It's always hard to beat teams twice," said Misuraca, whose squad took a 1-0 non-league win in Dallas on Sept. 20. "We've got to finish strong. At the end of the day, we've got to put games away."
All of the scoring was in the second half, with the first three goals coming in a 6 ½-minute flurry early in the stanza.
Sophomore forward Gavyn Rosales gave the Patriots (4-6-2, 1-2-1) the lead in the 49th minute, but the Hounds countered with tallies from junior forward Nick Huenig and freshman forward Ben Sauerlander for a 2-1 advantage with just under 24 minutes left.
DBU got the equalizer about nine minutes later when Rosales dribbled down the right side and fired a shot into the left corner of the net.
"I don't think it was a terrible performance, but it wasn't one that was up to our potential," Misuraca said. "I thought it was flat game for both teams. There wasn't a lot of energy."
The teams combined for 27 shots, but only seven were on frame. DBU had some chances, though, with an 11-3 advantage in corner kicks, but couldn't take full advantage.
Sophomore forward Felix Drizinsky, who notched an assist on Huenig's team-leading fifth goal of the campaign, earned his second LSC defensive player of the week honor this week after the Hounds tied Lubbock Christian and defeated St. Mary's in their previous two contests.
This week, the Hounds have league tilts slated for Wednesday at Texas A&M International and Saturday at home against Oklahoma Christian.
Oklahoma Christian 3, ENMU women 1 – In the first half of Wednesday's twin bill, the Eagles opened a 2-0 halftime lead en route to their second all-time victory in four outings against the Greyhounds.
After freshman defender Zoe Ross' third goal of the campaign gave OC (6-2-5, 2-2-4 LSC) the lead, junior forward Kyla Lovelace drove down the right side and fired a shot to the left corner of the net for her conference co-leading eighth goal of the year. Those were the only two shots on goal for the Eagles in the first half.
"You can't go down 2-0 in the first half, and that's been our trend," said second-year ENMU women's coach Eric Belcher, whose squad fell to 1-9-4 overall (0-7-1 LSC). "I'm pleased with how we're playing, just not excited with the results."
The knockout came when sophomore midfielder Hadley Horn tallied for the Eagles in the 52nd minute.
OC, which had allowed just 10 goals coming in, lost its bid for a shutout when ENMU junior midfielder Sierra Villanueva launched a shot from about 35 yards that hit the inside of the crossbar and rolled into the net for her first goal of the season.
That appeared to give the team a spark, but they were unable to dent the OC defense the rest of the way.
Belcher said the Hounds have tried to incorporate 20 new players into their system, including nine freshmen. He added that it just takes time and hopes his players, especially the younger ones, can learn from their travails.
"I think the adversity is good for them," Belcher said. "Most of them haven't had to deal with it much before now."
On Saturday, the Hounds played at Texas A&M International. This week, they visit Texas-Permian Basin on Wednesday before closing out the home portion of their slate in a 1 p.m. start on Saturday against Dallas Baptist.
Texas A&M International 3, ENMU 0 (Friday, volleyball) – The Dustdevils (14-6, 6-2 LSC) kept the Greyhounds winless in conference play, cruising to a 25-16, 25-18, 25-17 victory at Greyhound Arena.
Junior outside hitter Ariana Guerra posted 15 kills for International, while freshman setter Emma Lade had 35 assists and sophomore outside hitter Giulia Hortelan added 13 digs. Leading the way for the Hounds (8-16, 0-11) were senior outside hitter Mikaela Garvin with 13 kills and senior libero Getsemani Carrasco with 12 digs.
International pulled away to win the first set with an 8-1 run, then opened an 11-3 lead in Game 2. ENMU managed to get as close as three before the Dustdevils put it away.
In the third set, the Hounds fell behind 6-0 but used a 9-1 surge to pull even 14-14. International, though, scored the next four points en route to the victory.
ENMU was slated to host Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday afternoon. The Hounds then step outside the conference to host University of the Southwest at 6 p.m. on Monday.
