Lobo women, men fall in league play
Air Force scored a goal off a free kick in the 82nd minute to defeat New Mexico 2-1 in women’s soccer Sunday at the UNM complex.
UNM (4-4-2, 0-2-0 Mountain West) was called for a foul roughly 40 yards away with the score tied 1-1 in the 82nd minute, setting up a free kick for Air Force’s Kristina O’Sullivan. The senior took advantage of a 20 mph-plus wind at her back and lofted a ball high into the air that tucked into the top-left corner of the goal — just out of the reach of leaping Lobo ’keeper Tayler Hammack — to put Air Force (5-3-1, 1-1-0) up 2-1.
“On Friday night (against Colorado College) we probably didn’t deserve to win because we didn’t put the effort in during the first half,” UNM coach Heather Dyche said. “But today I thought we were the better team. But for whatever reason we couldn’t get the ball in the back of the net. But I wasn’t disappointed with our soccer or with our effort.”
Lobo Claire Lynch converted on a penalty shot in the 72nd minute to tie the match 1-1. It was her fourth goal of the season.
“It’s definitely not ideal to be starting 0-2, but I think this will fuel our fire,” Lynch said.
UNM MEN: In Lexington, Ky., Kentucky scored in the fifth minute to beat No. 21 New Mexico 1-0 and end the Lobos’ five-match winning streak.
UNM (5-3-0) lost its conference opener for the third straight season.
“It was a tough result today, we gave up kind of a flukey goal five minutes in and that first half was back and forth,” Lobos coach Jeremy Fishbein said. “We put in a great shift that second 45, we were all over them creating chances and getting behind them. The whole second half was played in their half (of the field). I wouldn’t say we had easy finishes but we created a lot of half-chances, you’ve got to take those, you’ve got to score goals.”