Pioneers slip past ENMU 1-0

PORTALES - Texas Woman's has had its share of trouble trying to score in the early portion of the season. Eastern New Mexico University, though, has had even more issues.

Freshman defender Rayne Islas tallied in the 18th minute on Wednesday, and it was enough for the Pioneers to edge the Greyhounds 1-0 in the Lone Star Conference women's soccer opener for both teams at Greyhound Stadium.

TWU (4-0-2 overall), which has scored just six goals this season but allowed only one, controlled the entire first half and was able to fend off some late challenges from the Hounds (2-4-0).

"It's tough coming to Portales," Pioneers coach Babak Abouzar said. "We're not used to the altitude and the wind. I know (second-year ENMU coach Abbey Barnum) is dealing with some issues right now, but they made it tough for us."

Texas Woman's outshot the Hounds on goal 9-1. ENMU's only shot on goal came around 60 minutes in, by sophomore forward/midfielder Kelsey Medina.

Barnum said what is hurting the Hounds is their lack of depth. They had just four available reserves in action against TWU.

"We've faced a lot of adversity," she said. "We're just trying to make progress. Today, I think we put up a good fight. We still have a lot to work on, but we'll get there."

Both teams had some chances in the second half, but couldn't find the net. ENMU came out in a bit more of an attack mode after the break.

"I think our team got a little complacent with a 1-0 lead," Abouzar said. "They (Hounds) obviously had to chase the game. They made things difficult, just clogging things up."

Senior goalkeeper made eight saves for the Hounds, including a few challenging stops. But ENMU, which has scored just four goals this season while giving up eight, never could quite connect on its pushes.

Barnum said the team had to come out of character trying to get the equalizer.

"We're a very pass-oriented team," she said. "We've got to kind of keep control of the ball, basically."

The Hounds were slated to play at Angelo State on Saturday afternoon. Their next outing is at home on Wednesday in a noon matchup against rival West Texas A&M.