BEAUMONT, Texas — Overcoming a tough challenge in the first half from Louisiana-Lafayette, Big Red rallied from one goal behind to a dominant 4-1 win. The Cardinals complete their three-game home stretch at 3-0 to start the season.
Four different Cardinals found the net including Eva Karen, Sabrina Lopez, Trinity Clark, and Cariel Ellis. Isela Ramirez led all of LU with two assists while Ellis, and Arely Alaniz also picked up assists for the night. Nicole Panis managed six saves despite facing 17 shots from the opposition.
The Cardinals did have to deal with adversity as they trailed for the first time this season. But as head coach Nathan Kogut puts it, the team made quick adjustments and were able to respond to the challenge. “Today was about being brave and hard work, said head coach Nathan Kogut. “The team that was going to put in the hard work was going to be the team that won because both teams match up really well. The first fifteen minutes, they were all over us. We made a couple of subs that turned the tide in our favor. We had a lot of game changers coming off the bench and were awesome. At halftime it was a challenge of they’re going to come after us. Can we rise to their level and beat it? Two goals in the first ten minutes really changes the entire way you play a half. I was happy to see us respond to some adversity that we did.”
Early on, ULL took offensive control piling up four shots, including the first goal of the contest in the 10th minute. But after drawing a foul, the Cardinals equalized as Karen netted her second free kick goal of the season ten minutes later. A defensive struggle followed until the 41st minute when Alaniz launched a deep pass to Lopez, who used her left foot to put Big Red up 2-1 going into the break. This all happened despite LU being outshot 10-4 in the half.
In the second half, Trinity Clark netted the third goal just 38 seconds in. Then in the 56th minute, Ellis went on a breakaway and struck the fourth goal that put the game away. The Cardinals’ defense and Panis were able to thwart off any opportunities for ULL to get closer for the remaining minutes of the half.
Despite the strong start to their season, Kogut is aware that each game has had some tough battles. “Winning is hard,” said head coach Nathan Kogut. “The fact we were able to do it says a lot about the group we’ve got. We’ve played a lot of people in the last three weeks. Winning is not very easy and the fact we’ve had to dig down deep. We’ve played three entirely different games and three different styles and we’ve managed to come away with three wins. I’m happy, but not satisfied. I think the girls feel the same way.”