Lady Thunderbirds cage Cougars on the field
Stephen Peck
Mesa Legend
The Lady Thunderbirds were riding high after winning against Glendale Community College, at home. The women beat the Gauchos after a double overtime tie with the Arizona Central Matadors. They carried this momentum in against the Cougars of South Mountain. The first goal came from the foot of Mia Martinez, assisted by Martina Bueno. A 1:18 later, Bueno put in her own unassisted goal, putting the Thunderbirds up 2-0. Esmerelda Cervantes scored her own unassisted goal 15 minutes later. In addition, a little over two minutes later, she sent another unassisted goal in the back of the net. She would not complete the hat trick for the game.
The Lady Thunderbirds, Joceline Bojorquez, put in the final goal of the first half, unassisted. The onslaught for the Cougars did not stop in the second 45 minutes. Maia Gajate scored unassisted within 3:19 of the second kickoff. The Cougars defense stepped up after the having a sixth Thunderbird goal hit the back of the net. At 72:20 the Cougar defense faltered and Maddison Ross, assisted by Taylor Roser, scoring goal number seven for the Lady T-Birds. The final goal of the match came just over six minutes later. Elle Betz, assisted by Cierra Poarch, put in the eighth goal.
The Lady Thunderbirds were the clear aggressors in the match. They took 19 shots, 11 of those the South Mountain keeper successfully kept out of the goal, and 5 corner kicks. According to the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference (ACCAC) Scoresheet, the Cougars only had two shots on goal. The Lady T-Birds followed up this victory with another notch in the win column against Cochise College, 2-0. And, a notch in the loss column against Pima Community College. They play against Paradise Valley and Gateway before having almost a week off. They will return to John D. Riggs Stadium on Sept. 30. to face the Fighting Artichokes of Scottsdale Community College.
