The Wildcats traveled to Beaumont, Texas to face Lamar Cardinals on Friday night and met the McNeese Cowboys in Lake Charles, Louisiana on Sunday afternoon.
ACU fell short, 4-6, to Lamar University on Friday night.
The Wildcats were able to score four goals on Friday night, but four second-half goals that the Cardinals were able to slip in, cost the Wildcats the game. A 2-1 halftime lead was not enough to stop one of the top-scoring offenses in the country. Lamar is ranked eighth nationally, with 44 goals.
The first goal of the night came from Lamar’s Madison Ledet in the 12th minute. The second goal came from senior Samantha Vestal, her fourth of the season, to tie the game.
In the 37th minute, freshman Natalie Jones scored her sixth goal of the season, after receiving an assist from senior Shay Johnson, giving ACU a 2-1 lead over Lamar.
The game was tied again in the 61st minute when Lamar’s Anna Loftus tied the game.
The second goal in the second half came in the 62nd minute when junior captain Christina Arteaga scored her ninth goal of the season off of a double assist from vestal and Jones. Lamar’s Lucy Ashworth tied the game again by scoring in the 69th minute.
In the 70th minute, the Cardinals were able to get another goal in by Anna Loftus, leading 4-3 over the Wildcats. Freshman Caylen Wright scored her fifth goal of the season and tied the game once more, 4-4 in the 81st minute.
During the 88th minute, Lucy Ashworth gave Lamar a 5-4 lead and seconds later, Lamar’s Esther Okorokwo secured the Cardinals a 6-4 lead over the Wildcats.
The Wildcats outshot Lamar University 22-21, but Lamar outshot ACU 10-9 with goals on frame.
Goalkeeper redshirt senior Rachel Johnson had a total of four saves. Both teams recorded seven corner kicks.
Arteaga and redshirt senior Sophie Standifer led the way with six shot attempts each. Wright had three shot attempts and Jones and Vestal each had two. The Wildcats still lead the overall series against the Cardinals, 4-3.
On Sunday afternoon, the Wildcats got back on track and beat one of the top teams in the Southland Conference, the McNeese Cowgirls, 3-0.
ACU scored once in the first half and twice more in the final 45 minutes of the game. The defense had its fourth shutout of the season.
The first goal of the game came from Arteaga in the 44th minute, for her 10th goal of the season, off of a penalty kick in the last 12 seconds of the first half. Arteaga took the advantage after a foul was made in the box, to get ACU on the scoreboard.
In the 51st minute, Wright scored her sixth goal of the season, after receiving assists from freshman Jordan Michie and Jones.
The Wildcats secured the victory over the Cowgirls in the 77th minute, when Jones received a pass from sophomore Alyssa Anuat.
Arteaga has scored a goal in five straight games, the longest streak of her career. Her previous streak was three games last season. Jones has had goals in three of the last five games and Wright has scored a goal in three of the last four games.
ACU outshout McNeese 11-8, including 6-4 of the shots made on frame.
Johnson had her 13th career shutout on Sunday, with four saves in the game. She has had a total of 38 saves this season.
“Mainly on Friday night, we played a very good offensive team. We made mistakes that hurt us,” Head Coach Casey Wilson said. “We were not discouraged and didn’t let it affect us because we had another game coming up. We bounced back and remained positive and it showed today.”
The Wildcats return back to Abilene for their final two home games at Elmer Gray Stadium this season. ACU will host the Ladyjacks of Steven F. Austin on Oct. 25 for its annual “Pink Match” at 7 p.m and the Sam Houston Bearkats at 1 p.m. on Oct. 27th.
