The Wildcats fell short in their conference opener Sunday, dropping a 2-1 decision to No. 25 Midwestern State. The game was restarted Sunday after rain postponed the game Friday afternoon.
“Midwestern is a tough team. They are a team we can’t make mistakes against,” Coach Casey Wilson said. “Unfortunately we made a few mistakes and they capitalized on them.”
Striking first, the Wildcats jumped out on the Mustangs as Andrea Carpenter scored her eighth goal on the season. She extended her goal streak, scoring in all seven games the Wildcats have played so far. However, that was the only time the Wildcats would score against the Mustangs.
MSU rallied back in the 19th minute as Kelsey Hill headed the ball past goalkeeper Arielle Moncure to tie the game at 1-1.
The Mustangs came out stronger in the second half and controlled the game. MSU outshot ACU 11-6 overall and 4-3, with shots on goal in the second half. MSU would score the game-winning goal off a rebound from the post. Mickey Brown buried her second shot into the net, taking a 2-1 lead. ACU would not be able to answer as the Mustangs handed ACU its second loss of the season.
“In our conference there is not a lot of room for mistakes, and it came back to bite us Sunday,” Wilson said. “We had our opportunities and matched up well with them, but a couple mistakes was the difference in the game.”
Moncure finished with three saves, although Midwestern State finished with 15 shots overall.
“Well it definitely was a hard pill to swallow, but Midwestern is a great team,” Lexi Stirling said. “We can’t dwell on the loss, but we need to learn from it and bring it in to our game on Friday. We know we are capable of winning every game; we just have to go out and prove it, even if it means playing under pressure.”
The Wildcats will look to rebound on the road this weekend in Oklahoma. ACU has played well on the road as they remain unbeaten at 5-0. ACU will travel to take on LSC opponents East Central University on Friday and Northeastern State on Sunday.
East Central has improved this season with a current record of 4Â-2-1. Last season the tigers finished 6-8-2, with one of those losses to the Wildcats. ACU edged the Tigers last season 1Â-0 in Abilene.
The RiverHawks enter Sunday’s match looking to improve on a 4-1-1 record. Last year ACU and NSU drew a 2-2 tie at home.
“Both teams are always solid, especially in the past couple years,” Wilson said. “We expect them to be tough games, but we have played well on the road this year. We expect to go down there and get back on track with two wins.”
