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Fort Lewis College Athletics

Scoreboard

Madyson Barela 4/3
Bob Bonnar, FLC Athletics
FLC sophomore Madyson Barela scored the lone goal in Saturday's 1-0 road win over CSU Pueblo (File photo).
1
Winner Fort Lewis FLC (3-1-2, 2-1-0)
0
CSU Pueblo CSUP (3-2-1, 1-1-1)
Winner
Fort Lewis FLC
(3-1-2, 2-1-0)
1
Final
0
CSU Pueblo CSUP
(3-2-1, 1-1-1)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Fort Lewis FLC 0 1 1
CSU Pueblo CSUP 0 0 0

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | David Wilson, Assistant AD-Communications

Barela's goal lifts Skyhawks to a 'gritty' 1-0 road win over CSU Pueblo

PUEBLO, Colorado — The Fort Lewis College women's soccer team took another maturation step forward Saturday, battling through fatigue to grind out a 1-0 road win over Colorado State University Pueblo.

Fort Lewis (3-1-2 overall, 2-1-0 RMAC) was coming off a taxing 2-1 home loss to No. 13 Colorado School of Mines on Thursday and went to battle against a rested and talented ThunderWolves squad (3-2-1 overall, 1-1-1 RMAC).

"I think that was a huge performance for us and one of the biggest pieces was CSU Pueblo not playing Thursday and us coming into the game off of playing one of the best teams in the country," said FLC head women's soccer coach, Damian Clarke. "Finding a way to pull out a victory was huge for us."

Sophomore goalkeeper Katherine Dunbabin helped keep the Skyhawks in the game during the first half as CSU Pueblo finished with a 6-3 shots advantage during the opening 45 minutes.

Dunbabin finished with two saves and a number of punch outs to get the ball out of danger in the FLC box.

"The first 10 of 15 minutes we felt pretty good and were able to dictate where we the game was being played. But (CSU Pueblo) is a very well coached team, they play possession-oriented. Once we got a little fatigued, they were able to keep the ball and force us to chase," Clarke said. "We got exhausted, but got save massive saves from Katie in the first half to keep us in the game and they realistically put us under a lot of pressure."

Fort Lewis used to breather at halftime to its advantage, though, netting the game's only goal in the 53rd minute when sophomore midfielder Madyson Barela won a ball, muscled her way past a defender and delivered a left-footed strike into the far corner.

It was the second goal of the season for Barela, already matching her goal total from as season ago as a freshman.

"In that second half, we found a second wind and made a couple tactical adjustments. We found the right time to press, Mady picked up the ball, beat someone inside and finished a great shot to the far post," Clarke said. "Really, when it comes down to it, her accuracy from distance is pretty unique. She has a lot of clubs in her bag, if you will."

Clarke also praised the play of junior Swiss Army Knife, Katie Smith, as the First Team All-RMAC midfielder helped quarterback the FLC defense on Saturday, limiting the ThunderWolves to just three total shots in the second half and two shots on goal for the game.

"Katie Smith was unbelievable today. She really found some grit and found her voice to control the back four," Clarke said.

Fort Lewis will now look to rest up and prepare for another road matchup next Thursday against Adams State University. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. in Alamosa.

"That was a well-timed game for us to find some grittiness, a little bit of extra fitness, and to get a result there going into our next game with some excitement about the direction we're going," Clarke said. "A bit of rest now will do us good."
 
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