ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Now it gets interesting. And it stays tricky as well.
The Lobos will take on Wyoming and Colorado State in week three of Mountain West play as the entire league will hit the halfway mark of the league slate. New Mexico will be hoping to stay in a tie for second place, and at best move up into the top spot in the league, currently held by Colorado College.
Neither game will be easy for UNM. Wyoming knocked out the Lobos from teh semifinals of the conference tournament in 2014 and the Cowgirls finished in second place in the league at 8-3-0 last year. Colorado State, just a third year program, has already won more games this year than last year and has been in every game this conference season.
“I actually thought we start out both games well last week,” said head coach Heather Dyche. “but as we settled into the games I thought we lost our cohesion and I thought our defensive transition was a little bit too slow. Our possession wasn’t very good.”
New Mexico split its two games last weekend as the Lobos defeated Nevada on Friday night 1-0 and then lost to UNLV 3-1 on Sunday. Against the Wolf Pack, UNM got a second half goal from Ruth Bruciaga and Cassie Ulrich and the Lobo back line made it stand for a 1-0 victory. On Sunday, looking to go 4-0-0 in conference play for only the second time in 21 years, UNM could hold onto an early 1-0 lead. Madisyn Olguin scored just 64 seconds into the game, but the Rebels bounced back with two second half tallies and then a clinching goal in the second half as UNLV handed UNM its first conference loss.
Getting to Laramie is always an adventure, one that requires a plane flight and a two-hour minimum bus ride, but the Lobos are 2-0-0 in conference play on the road, and Dyche feels her charges will be up to the challenge.
“Anytime you go play Wyoming in Laramie it’s just not easy,” said Dyche. “It’s a hard travel day and they are a hard fighting team, a prideful team.”
Overall, Dyche knows exactly what the week ahead means. “This is a big weekend for us. If we can come out of this with a result or two it puts us in a really good position.”
Lobos vs. Wyoming
New Mexico’s most common opponent is the Wyoming Cowgirls. The game on Friday will be the 26th between the two programs. UNM leads the all-time series 14-6-5, and those 14 wins are the most by UNM over any single team. In Laramie, the series is a little closer with the Lobos leading 4-3-2. Last year the two teams met twice. UNM won the first meeting on senior day in Albuquerque as Claire Lynch slotted home the game-winner with under five minutes to go. In San Diego in the conference tournament semifinals, the Lobos held a 1-0 lead but Wyoming tied the game in the 73rd minute and then won it midway through the first overtime 2-1.
Lobos vs. Colorado State
The Lobos and the Rams will be playing for just the third time, with UNM winning the previous two games. The Lobos won at the UNM Soccer Complex last season 1-0 on a Maddie Irwin goal just 1:20 into the second half. In Ft. Collins in 2013, UNM got a hat trick from Ft. Collins native Lindsey Guice, the first of her career, as UNM defeated the Rams 3-0.