scschroc@mavs.coloradomesa.edu

Losing its final three regular season matches is not what the women’s soccer team had planned heading into the playoffs. The Mavs failed to score over the three-match losing stretch, resulting in a 2-0 loss at CSU-Pueblo on Friday and a 3-0 loss at Colorado School of Mines on Sunday.

The Mavericks had a chance to pick up three points against CSU-Pueblo, who had only one win on the season prior to Friday’s match. The Mavs dictated possession in the first half but only managed to shoot five times. Play opened up in the second half, producing end-to-end buildups for both teams.

Pueblo’s breakthrough came in the 79th minute after the Mavs missed several scoring chances. Pueblo’s Amanda Jorgensen took a through-ball from Alicia Irwin and placed her shot to the right side of the goal. The Mavs missed another two chances, and it took just five minutes for Jorgensen to score her second goal, sealing the match. Despite out-shooting Pueblo 19-15, the Mavs only put seven shots on target.

“We knew Pueblo only had one win, but in past years we always struggled playing our game against them, and this time we were playing relatively well,” captain Leilani Wiernicki said. “We didn’t adjust to our coach’s points and it resulted in a loss.”

Sunday’s match pitted the Mavericks against the RMAC’s second-ranked Colorado Mines. More missed chances hurt the Mavs and resulted in another scoreless first half. Colorado Mine’s Megan Woodworth took a deflection off of Sarah Schnetzler and scored from the top of the penalty area in the 51st minute.

“We were still in the game even after the first goal,” midfielder Veronica Rodriguez said. “We had dangerous runs and chances, but the second goal put the game away.”

That second goal came in the 73rd minute when Anna Evan’s header beat Schnetzler.

With a playoff spot already clinched, coach Erin Sharpe made substitutions, and with two minutes remaining, Woodworth struck another goal from 15 yards out. The Mavs only put two shots on target while Mines put nine.

The three losses dropped the Mavs (9-6-3, 6-6-2 RMAC) to the sixth seed, which means they play the quarterfinal match on Wednesday in Denver against Metro State (12-4-2, 9-3-2 RMAC). Wiernicki said the team knows the importance of playoffs and will pull through.

Rodriguez added that the team can have a fresh start and take the tournament game by game.

“We didn’t end up with the best record,” Rodriguez said. “But we still know the competition and know what we need to fix.”