DENTON, Texas - Texas Woman's fought hard in its matchup with #9 Western Washington but failed to put any points on the board in a 2-0 loss to a much larger and faster team.
WWU (4-1) faced TWU (2-2) for the first time ever Wednesday. Nationally ranked and not far off from their 2016 NCAA Division II national championship, the Vikings kept the Pioneers focused on defense most of the game, making 11 total shot attempts to the Pioneers' three. Sophomore midfielder Jazmine Navarro, sophomore forward Emma Green and junior midfielder Maddie Nolton were the only Pioneers to get shots off the entire game.
"We knew that it was going to be a game where we were going to have to sit in a little bit and let them have possession and be ready for that long ball," TWU head coach Babak Abouzar said.
The first half of the game was a battle for control between the two teams. Western Washington managed two shot attempts in the first half, including one shot on goal by senior forward Gabriela Pelogi with a narrow save by TWU junior goalkeeper Daniela Marin. As the WWU attack advanced, the Pioneers dug in and were able to stifle the Vikings.
"They're number nine in the country for a reason," Abouzar said. "Their players were in the right spots, they knew where they needed to be. Even in those moments we tried to press them they were able to play out of it."
The second half was a shift in momentum as the Pioneers struggled to keep up the same energy they had in the first, resulting in Pelogi landing the first goal with assists from junior midfielder Liv Larson and junior defender Peyton Chick at 54:19. Sophomore forward Zoe Milburn gave the Vikings a two-goal cushion when she took a free kick 30 yards out, lofting it over Marin in the 75thminute.
Western Washington led the game with eight corner kicks to the TWU's one.
"We told the team before the game that these are the types of games we need to play to help us get ready for conference and make sure we're battle tested come next Friday," Abouzar said.
The Pioneers finish their non-conference schedule Saturday when they host Oklahoma Baptist at 7 p.m.
