UNM hosts CSU in Lobos Love Pink Game 1 p.m. Friday
UNM GAME NOTES | IN-GAME UPDATES ON @UNMLOBOWSOCCER
Friday, Oct. 20 – 1 p.m.
New Mexico (10-6, 5-3) vs. Colorado State (4-7-5, 2-3-3)
Albuquerque, N.M. – UNM Soccer Complex
LIVE STREAM / LIVE STATS
Sunday, Oct. 22 – 12:30 p.m.
New Mexico (10-6, 5-4) at Wyoming (7-7-2, 3-4-1)
Laramie, Wyoming – Madrid Sports Complex
LIVE STREAM / LIVE STATS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The University of New Mexico women’s soccer team is in the midst of not only fighting for one of the six Mountain West Tournament spots in the 12-team league, but the Lobos are also battling for one of the two byes in the tournament as they host Colorado State for their Lobos Love Pink game 1 p.m. Friday before hitting the road to take on Wyoming 12:30 p.m. Sunday.
UNM (10-6 overall, 5-3 Mountain West) is tied with Air Force for second place in the Mountain West with 15 points – four points behind first-place San Jose State. But the Lobos have far from secured a spot in the tournament as with three games left, the difference between second place (15 points) and 10th place (eight points) is just seven points. Seventh place – the first team on the outside of the MW Tournament right now – is Fresno State with 11 points, a margin that can easily be made up as each conference game will count over the final eight days of the regular season.
The Lobos split a pair of games last weekend on the road, falling 1-0 to Air Force on Friday night and defeating Colorado College 2-1 on Sunday afternoon. On Friday, the Lobos and Falcons were scoreless until the 70th minute when Air Force scored the lone goal of the contest (UNM took 17 shots with 11 on goal, but couldn’t find the back of the net). On Sunday, the Lobos got a first-half goal from Jessie Hix (assisted by Claire Lynch) and a Lynch second-half goal to take a 2-0 lead and held on for the 2-1 victory.
UNM hosts a Colorado State team it hasn’t lost to in the Rams’ short five-year history with the Lobos 4-0 against CSU (the teams didn’t play in in the Rams’ first year). While the Lobos are 4-0 against CSU, the last three games have been close 1-0 victories for UNM. The Rams went 1-0-1 last weekend at home, playing Boise State to a 2-2 tie on Friday and beating Utah State 2-0 Sunday.
On Sunday, the Lobos travel north to take on their most common foe in their 25-year history in Wyoming. The teams have played 27 times with UNM leading the series 14-7-6, but the last nine meetings have been dead even at 3-3-3. In Laramie, the Lobos are 4-3-3 all-time. The Cowgirls are coming off an 0-2 weekend at home, losing to Utah State 3-1 on Friday and by the same score to Boise State on Sunday.
NOTES HEADING INTO FRIDAY:
- Senior Claire Lynch has scored a goal in four of the Lobos’ last five games after knocking home a goal against Colorado College on Sunday. It gives her seven goals on the season with six of them being game winners. In her career, Lynch has 24 goals – tied for third place on the UNM all-time list. Of her 24 goals, 13 are game winners (third on the all-time UNM list). Her 50 career points are fourth on the Lobo all-time list, one points behind third.
- Senior Emily Chavez enters her fourth season as a starter for the Lobos and is on a 72-match starting streak. Not only has the Albuquerque native started every game of her Lobo career, the center back has le the Lobos in minutes played each season, hit the 6,000-minute career mark earlier this eason and her 6,447 career minutes has her seventh on the Lobos’ all-time list – and she’ll likely move into sixth this weekend, passing Ashley Lowery (6,564 – 2003-06).
- UNM sophomore keeper Emily Johnson sits atop the Mountain West in shutouts with six. Her goals against average of 0.93 is second in the Mountain West.
- UNM sophomore Jessie Hix scored the Lobos’ first goal in a 2-1 victory over Colorado College on Sunday via a header – a common theme for the Albuquerque native this season. All five of her goals (which is second on the team this season) have come via headers.
- UNM coach Heather Dyche owns an overall record of 29-21-5 with above .500 records in each season. With at least three games left (more if the Lobos qualify for the Mountain West Tournament), the Albuquerque native has a chance to break the record for most wins by a UNM coach in their first three seasons (John DeWitt (who coached the Lobos from 1996-2000) had 30 wins in his first two seasons, Dyche has 29 wins, Amy Allman (1993-95) had 27 and Kit Vela (2001-14) had 19.
- Along with the success on the field, the UNM women’s soccer program is proving to be one of the top teams off of it as well as the Lobos put together a 3.77 GPA in the 2017 spring semester. It’s the 14th-consecutive semester UNM women’s soccer has put together a 3.4 GPA or better.
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