Zags Falter Against Loyola Marymount
10/25/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
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SPOKANE, Wash.—The shot creation was there for the Gonzaga University women's soccer team, but the execution wasn't as the Zags dropped a 2-1 West Coast Conference match to Loyola Marymount Friday afternoon at Luger Field.
The Zags dominated the stats sheet, particularly in the first half as they outshot the Lions 15-4 in the frame. Mikayla Anderson got things rolling for Gonzaga at the 1:30 mark when her attempt fell just right of the goal. She found paydirt less than two minutes later though, when she finished off a pass from Karley Baggerly for the match's first goal. Seconds before, Baggerly brought the ball up along the end line to the right of the goal. She looked up and saw Anderson free on the right post. All Anderson had to do was one-time Baggerly's pass into the right corner of the net to give Gonzaga a lead before three minutes had elapsed. At 2:50, the score was the Zags' fastest of the season.
That wasn't the only Gonzaga scoring chance of the half as the Bulldogs put six more shots on goal and saw another hit the post. Six different Zags saw an attempt on frame during the first 45 minutes, and Anderson had the agony of hitting the right post in the 32nd minute. The senior's attempt from roughly 10 yards out bent from the right side of the box left. It was just a few inches wide to the left, however, and bounced back into play instead of into the net. The LMU defense then cleared the ball from danger.
Despite controlling possession for most of the half, the Zags let in first-half two goals, both of which were against the flow of play. LMU evened the match at the 17:45 mark when Shannon Kent blasted a short pass from Morgan Hilby past Gonzaga keeper Christie Tombari. The Lions scored a second off a set piece in the 39th minute. This time it was Hilby who scored, getting her head off a free kick by Jenni Berger.
"We got caught on a couple of opportunities that were against the grain, so we've got to focus better on that," said Gonzaga head coach Amy Edwards. "We were a bit thrown off by going into halftime at 2-1, and we just weren't gritty enough in the second half."
The Lions controlled more of the action in the second half, outshooting Gonzaga 9-6 in the frame. LMU put six of those chances on frame, but Tombari stepped up big to keep the Zags alive. She stopped all six shots on frame she faced, even denying Jocelyn Blankenship of a penalty kick in the 60th minute. Blankenship fired the penalty to the left side of the goal, but Tombari followed it and sent the attempt wide, keeping Gonzaga within one. The redshirt junior was particularly effective late in the game, making three saves in the final eight minutes to halt a few LMU attacks. Tombari's goalkeeping wasn't enough, however, as the Zag offense didn't find an equalizer and the Zags fell 2-1.
"Christie kept us in the game; she was our highlight of the game," Edwards said of her keeper. "She did everything possible to help us win. We did not execute. Our goalkeeper kept the team in the game, made a fantastic penalty-kick save, and we weren't able to execute."
With the loss, the Zags fall to 8-7-0 overall and 3-2-0 in conference play. They look to bounce back against the 11th-ranked Pepperdine Waves on Sunday, Oct. 26, in the Zags' annual Pink at the Pitch game. Any fan who shows up to Luger Field for the 1:00 p.m. match wearing pink will receive $2 admission, and the first 75 students in attendance will receive a free pink water bottle courtesy of the WCC.
