DENVER, Colo.- In a tense back-and-forth match, the Colorado Mesa University women's soccer team fell short in a penalty shootout to the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers.
The Orediggers won their 12th RMAC title and booked their ticket to the NCAA Tournament while the Mavericks are tournament runners-up for the second consecutive season.
The Mavericks finished their season 11-4-5 with an RMAC record of 7-2-3.
The action started in the fifth minute when Mines' leading scorer Bella Campos had a chance to open the scoring, but it was blocked by the Mavs defense.
Both teams proceeded to get great looks as Mines' Caelan DeBolt had two chances to score in the ninth minute, but they were both dealt with by Keely Wieczorek. Angelina Kazinec got her golden chance a minute later, but it was saved by goalkeeper Emma Thomas.
The Mavs got another chance in the 19th minute; one they did not let slip away. Jenelle Arenibas played a great ball over the Orediggers' defense; Thomas went off her line to go get the ball, but it was intercepted by Kazinec who found herself with not only the ball, but an open net. She found the back of the net to give the Mavs the lead.
However, the Orediggers responded almost immediately as Campos drove down the length of the field and found Debolt, who buried a header to tie the game.
Both defenses toughened up and did let up any more chances on goal; the next big chance for the Mavs came in the 38th minute with a shot from Sarah Dunn. But her look was saved by Thomas.
The first half ended deadlocked at one.
The teams traded three shots each to open the second half. Natalie Rouse, Lindsay Jeans and Campos all shot for Mines and Olivia Bariao-Arce and Ellie Duncan for Mesa. Both Thomas and Wieczorek made crucial saves to keep the game tied.
The Orediggers continued to be on the attack, firing five more shots towards Wieczorek in the 70th minute. But all were taken care of by her and the defense.
The Mavs found a late push in the final ten minutes of regulation, but none of their shots amounted to goals as the match went into overtime.
The first half of overtime saw great looks from both Parker Mairs and Ella Speerschneider, but all three attempts were saved by Thomas. Campos had one more look before the break but, but it came up short.
The second half of overtime saw Duncan and Speerschneider both have great looks but were once again saved by Thomas. The match, and the RMAC Championship, came down to penalties.
The Mavs sent five players to take penalty shots: Mari Ige, Brooklyn Baird, Bario-Arce, Arenibas and Vanessa Pirrello. Ige, Baird and Bario-Arce all made their attempts, but Arenibas' shot was saved by Thomas and Pirrello's shot missed the left post. Campos, Gaby Guerrero, Debolt and Bella Torres all made their attempts to give the Orediggers their third consecutive RMAC title.
After 110 minutes of play, the Orediggers barely outshot the Mavs 19-17, with ten of CMU's shots being on goal. Kazinec scored her second goal of the season while Wieczorek made four saves. Wieczorek, Arenibas, Duncan and Mairs were also named to the RMAC All-Tournament Team for their contributions.
