GOLDEN, Colo. – A 71st minute penalty kick was the difference Friday night at Stermole Stadium as the Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team got back in the win column and earned three valuable points with a 1-0 win over Colorado Christian. In a tightly contested match between the Orediggers (6-2-2, 2-1-1) and upset-minded Cougars (1-6-4, 0-4-1), it was none other than
Bella Campos who played the role of hero as she converted the go-ahead penalty shot to secure the win behind a shutout effort from the defense.
Colorado Christian had the Orediggers on their heels in the first half, as they controlled much of the possession and flow of the match.
Keira Garcia was put to the test early and often, as she turned in four early saves in goal to keep things scoreless. The usually high-powered Mines offense was held in check in the first half, unable to generate much of anything and being held to six shots in the opening 45 minutes with
Annelise Rojo's fourth minute shot the lone attempt on frame.
With the resumption of play in the second half, the Cougars continued to play inspired defense while Mines looked to implement some tactical adjustments coming out of the break. Two looks by the Orediggers in the 52nd and 67th minutes were saved by Kenzie Kunitz as with time winding down, it felt as if the result of the match was going to come down to one pivotal moment. Fortunately for Mines, that moment came in the 71st minute when
Bella Campos got free inside the box and was taken down by Grace Sams to earn a penalty kick. The senior wasted little time after the referee's whistle for action, as she went top shelf on the back post for the goal and the 1-0 lead.
With the lead now in hand, the Orediggers relied on their defense to close things out. A late line change by CCU saw seven players sub back in the final 13 minutes, but the personnel change did little to generate any momentum for the visitors on offense against a stingy backline effort by Mines.
Lindsay Jeans rattled the crossbar and nearly made it a two-goal game in the closing minutes before Garcia made a late save and plucked a last-second corner kick out of the air in front of goal as time expired on the winning performance.
NOTABLES
-Campos snapped a 12-day scoreless streak with her ninth goal of the season; In doing so she scored her 59th career goal and bumped her career point total up to 138
-Garcia turned in her second shutout of the season in goal behind a career-high six saves
-Mines finished with a 13-10 advantage in total shots while CCU held a 6-5 edge in shots on goal
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Kate Hendrickson played a career-high 57 minutes off the bench as she provided a spark defensively
-The Orediggers are now 30-0-1 all-time against Colorado Christian and improve to 16-0-0 at home in the series
-CCU is now the first opponent Mines has won 30 matches against in program history
UP NEXT
The Orediggers wrap up their two-week home stand Sunday at 12 p.m. against MSU Denver as part of a doubleheader with the men's team.
Fans can keep up with Mines women's soccer on X and Instagram 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.
