No. 16 Women's Soccer Falls at No. 4 Central Methodist

Fayette, Mo., (Oct. 11, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's soccer teams traveled to Fayette, Mo., for a Wednesday evening Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader against Central Methodist (Mo.).  The No. 20 women's team fell to No. 4 Central Methodist, 4-2.

Play in the women's game started with early chances for Central Methodist.  The Eagles hit the crossbar with just over six minutes played in the contest, then scored the game's first goal one minute later to put the team on top, 1-0.  Just over seven minutes following the goal, CMU increased its lead out to 2-0.  Freshman Goalkeeper Lola Benitez (Madrid, Spain) came up with her first save midway through the half to keep the Vikings at a two-goal deficit.  The first quality chance for Missouri Valley came near the 28-minute mark as Sophomore Forward Viktoria Einsbor (Havdrup, Denmark) put a shot on goal that needed to be saved.  The Vikings continued to pressure CMU, and Junior Forward Miriam Aldabo Alguero (Mequinenza, Spain) cut the gap in half, scoring with less than 14 minutes to play before halftime.  The Eagles tried to tack on a late goal in the half, but Benitez came up with another save, and Sophomore Defender Marta Carasco Mesa (Sevilla, Spain) saved a shot just before it crossed the line in the final three minutes of play to send the teams into halftime with a 2-1 scoreline.

Missouri Valley created a shot on goal just over one minute after the restart, but the attempt from Sophomore Forward Ashley Arribas (Lake Forest, Calif.) was saved  Seven minutes later, Central Methodist came close to increasing its advantage, as Benitez needed to make another save.  However, the Eagles scored quickly after the previous shot, and extended the lead to 3-1 near the 53-minute mark.  Benitez made two more saves over the following 14 minutes of play.  The next chance for either team came past the midway point of the half, as Carrasco Mesa had a shot saved.  Missouri Valley took advantage of possession still in the box after the initial save, and Arribas put her attempt past the keeper to make it a 3-2 deficit with 17 minutes remaining in the contest.  The two teams traded chances near the 81-minute mark, as Benitez made a save, and was followed soon after by an Einsbor shot saved close to the goal line by an Eagles defender.  Central Methodist countered back after the defensive save, and scored once again, stretching out to a 4-2 advantage with less than eight minutes left on the clock.  Missouri Valley was unable to work any chances in the closing minutes, and fell, 4-2.

Arribas scored her team-leading eighth goal of the season, and now has a team-high 18 points.  Aldabo Aguero added her second goal.  Benitez made seven saves in goal.  The Vikings created eight total shots, and two corner kicks.

Missouri Valley drops to 7-4-2 on the season and 6-1 in the Heart.  Central Methodist improves to 11-1-1 overall and 7-0 in the conference.

Up next, the teams will host William Penn (Iowa) for Homecoming, Saturday evening inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  Women's game starts at 6 p.m., and the men's game against the No. 14 Statesmen is 8:30 p.m.

Box Score-Click Here

About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.