(Tucson, AZ) The Pima Community College women’s soccer team took an early lead but dropped a heartbreaker in double overtime on Wednesday in the final day of pool play at the NJCAA Division II National Tournament.
The No. 5 seeded Aztecs fell to Northwest Mississippi Community College 2-1 in double overtime.
Melinda Hernandez scored the golden goal for the Rangers in the 107th minute. It was her second goal of the game as she tied it up at 1-1 in the 49th minute.
The Aztecs got on scoreboard first when sophomore Caitlyn Maher (Catalina Foothills HS) volleyed the ball into the net to put Pima ahead 1-0 in the 10th minute. The Aztecs finished with four shots on goal as a pair of them hit the cross bar and one in overtime that just sailed over the bar.
Sophomore Angelina Amparano (Salpointe Catholic HS) finished the game with two saves. She finished with 76 saves on the season.
Coach’s quote: “I’m proud of how hard my girls played especially when we were a person down,” Pima women’s soccer coach Kendra Veliz said referring to sophomore Delaney Buntin’s (Cienega HS) red card in the 82nd minute. “We created opportunities against a good team but just couldn’t put it away. It’s a disappointing way for a great group of players to go out.”
The Aztecs close out the 2022 season at 14-3-1 overall and 9-2 in ACCAC conference play. It was the least amount of losses in conference play since 2015. They went 6-1 at the West Campus Aztec Field and 6-1-1 on the road. Pima scored 47 goals and earned 12 shutout victories.
Press Release courtesy of Pima Athletics – Raymond Suarez
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