DURANGO, Colo. – Colorado Mesa used more late-game heroics from Sauvelyne Randel to make it a clean sweep of two of the Lone Star's top three preseason teams this weekend, defeating West Texas A&M 2-1 behind Randel's game-winner in the 71^st minute.

Randel rebounded from missing a penalty kick to score just a minute later off a corner kick from Haley Klasner. It marked Randel's sixth goal of the season, matching her entire 2022 total in just five matches, and Klasner's team-high fourth assist.

The win improves CMU to 5-0 on the season, matching a program record from 1997 for the team's best-ever start to a season. This year's Mavs will now set their sights on the 2012 Mavericks, who opened the season with a tie but had a program-best nine-game season-opening unbeaten streak, opening that season 7-0-2.

Mikayla Eccher scored her second goal of the season to put the Mavs up a half-hour into the match and had a team-high four shots. The Mavericks outshot West Texas A&M 16-2, putting eight shots on goal and forcing Lone Star Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year Reagan Heelan to make six saves to keep the Buffs in the game.

The Mavs put offensive pressure on WT early, with Heelan stopping defender Kaydree Rapp off a corner kick in the 19^th minute and stopping Eccher just over two minutes later. Eccher had another opportunity in the 30^th minute, and while Heelan denied the redshirt senior's first attempt, Eccher pounced on her own rebound and put it away into the bottom corner with her left foot.

West Texas A&M only managed one shot in the first half but came out of the locker room at halftime and immediately turned the tides. Senior midfielder Ashley Silvestre went on a solo run into the box and nestled a shot inside the far post only 75 seconds into the second half, and suddenly, the Buffs were back in the game.

But Colorado Mesa's defense locked in. After West Texas A&M's goal, the Mavs would outshoot the Buffs 9-0 over the match's final 44 minutes.

The Mavericks still had to find a winner, though, and Heelan single-handedly seemed like she was going to earn a point for West Texas A&M. The Buffs keeper made a save on Randel in the 68^th minute before a WT foul gave Randel her third penalty kick opportunity of the season in the 70^th minute. But Heelan came up huge, saving the penalty before the WT defense scrambled away another shot from Haley Klasner, leading to a CMU corner kick.

The third team would be the charm for Randel. Klasner sent the corner kick outside the top of the penalty box rather than into the scrum in front of the net. Randel gathered and fired a right-footed shot from 20 yards out that sailed over Heelan's head and into the goal.

Randel has six goals this season on just nine shots on goal. She already has three game-winning goals on the season, halfway to Lila Dere's single-season program record of six set in 2021.

The Mavericks begin RMAC play next weekend on the road, facing New Mexico Highlands on Friday at 3 p.m. and Adams State on Sunday at 1 p.m.