ALAMOSA, Colo. – The sun was out, and the skies were clear Friday afternoon at the ASU Soccer Field as the #20 Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team opened Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play against Adams State. After a slow start to the game, the Orediggers (4-1-1) took the lead right before halftime and never looked back, adding two more scores in the second half to defeat the Grizzlies (1-4-0) 3-0 and open the RMAC slate with a win.
The action got off to a semi-pedestrian start as nearly 15 minutes of game action elapsed before the first shot of the afternoon came from
Ellise Putnam, but her shot to the top right corner was saved by Adams State keeper Ashlyn Bartley to keep things level.
Mines seemed to find a little rhythm on offense in the minutes that followed, with
Laura Butler missing just right before
Brooke Pennington found the crossbar moments later. The Orediggers possessed the rebound and Butler's second effort of the match was on target but was snared by the keeper.
Following a shot by
Reese McDermott in the 19th minute, the pace of play slowed and the action turned into a back-and-forth battle for possession with neither team being able to gain a clear advantage.
All remained quiet until the 34th minute, when Mines was awarded a throw in on the far side of the field.
Landry Corbett's front-flip effort sailed into the box, where a waiting
Jordan Barnhart was able to get a head on the ball and send it top shelf over the reach of Bartley for the first goal of the match.
A shot by
Paola Rubi in the 43rd minute was on target, but her effort was saved by Bartley as the half ended with the Orediggers leading on the scoreboard and the stat sheet, holding a 9-0 edge in shots and 4-0 advantage in corners.
The second half opened with a bang for the Orediggers, who wasted little time doubling their advantage. A failed clear attempt by the Grizzlies in their own end resulted in a turnover that
Afton Rasco came up with before playing the ball ahead to McDermott, who found the lower left corner of the goal past a diving attempt by the keeper to make it 2-0.
Mines continued to control the flow of the game as the half progressed, constantly pressuring the Grizzlies' defense and spending plenty of time in the offensive zone. Butler, Rubi and Putnam all had looks at goal as the half progressed, but none of them found their mark it remained a two-goal game.
With time winding down in the match, The Orediggers weren't finished yet on offense, as in the 86th minute, a corner kick from
Colleen Tyrrell was headed home by
Jolie Jiricek to make it 3-0 as Mines went on to collect their first RMAC win of the season.
NOTABLES
- Barnhart's goal was her first of 2022 and the fifth of her career.
- McDermott's goal was her sixth of the season as she has now scored in four of Mines' six matches this season.
- Jiricek's goal was the first of her career and becomes the eighth different scorer this season for the Orediggers.
- Mines did not allow a shot to Adams State in the game, marking the first time since 2019 and just the third time since 2016 the Orediggers accomplished the feat; the last time it happened as also against Adams State in October 2019.
- The Orediggers recorded 18 shots in the game from 11 different players, including three players with three shots.
- The Mines defense logged their fourth shutout of the season and have outscored opponents 14-0 in those games.
UP NEXT
Mines concludes their road trip Sunday September 18 with another RMAC contest against New Mexico Highlands beginning at 12 p.m. before returning to Stermole Stadium Friday September 23 for a 7:30 p.m. matchup with Black Hills State.
Fans can keep up with Mines women's soccer on Twitter at @mineswsoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.
