Scoring wise, it was a close District 1A/3A girls soccer match

The final score of 2-1 St. Michael’s over visiting Santa Fe Prep indicted it was a tight tussle, but the Lady Horsemen missed shots that could have made it a romp on Tuesday afternoon at the Christian Brothers Athletic Complex.

It was a District 1A/3A match, the first of two between the schools, with St. Michael’s at 9-3 and having won 9 of its last 10 and 3 in a row, and the Griffins chill-hot at 12-2 with 10-straight victories.

But it was all Lady Horsemen at the outset, taking five shots quick shots that were either stopped, were too high. were too low, were too wide, and just didn’t get it past Prep freshman goalkeeper Maya Crawford. But until the 9:37 mark of the opening quarter, the Griffins never had possession.

In all, the home side got off 15 shots, Prep only three, and on its second shot junior midfielder/forward Lusa Hirsch-Arnett, the team’s second leading scorer, took control of the ball at midfield and scored an unassisted breakaway goal on a one-and-one against St. Michael’s senior goalie Jacquelyn Gorman at 10:70 into the half.

Although the Lady Horsemen in the third year under head coach Alfonso Camarena continued to get off shots and threaten for more goals, they didn’t tie things until sophomore Eliana Lovato, not long after being injured on a play just outside the Griffins net. She remained down for quite some time and later said she wasn’t fouled, just slipped on the grass trying to get off a shot.

But the forward/midfielder came back with 2:33 left in the half, and on an assist from junior midfielder/defender Jada Lujan, booted in a goal on what was her team’s ninth shot.

“We’re taking a lot of shots,” said Carmarena, “but we’re also hitting the ball out of bounds too much at times when we were looking to get the ball down field, but our defense is doing well enough to keep them even getting away shots.”

Prep wound up with only three shots, and with 4:36 remaining junior midfielder/forward Tara Schneider of the Lady Horsemen raced to keep the ball in bounds to the right of the opposition goal, and she kicked the ball back and senior midfielder/forward Grace Sandoval, the team’s second leading scorer, took a close shot at the goal, but when it bounced back, she kicked in what turned out to be the game winner.

St. Michael’s was playing with leading scorer, freshman midfielder/striker Sophia Miera, sidelined after suffering a concussion in the last match. She served as a cheerleader and will return for Thursday’s match at district rival Robertson, which is 11-1 overall and 1-1 in district, in the first of two outings.

The rain suddenly came down slowly and then it poured as the Lady Horsemen hurried to bring in their overhead cover while still cheering. When it stopped, the field was wet and tough to move on, but it remained the overall play of the home team that won state 3A in 2020 over Socorro and finished second to Albuquerque Sandia Prep last season.

Meanwhile, Santa Fe Prep, under first-year head coach Adelyn Smith, needs to get its all-around game going when it plays when next at district foe Santa Fe Indian School. From there, it heads for Robertson, is then home at Sun Mountain Field to the Lady Horsemen, and winds up the regular season at West Las Vegas in all district matches. The Griffins dropped to 3-1 in district.

St. Michael’s became 3-0 in district, and after Robertson, is home to Indian School, at West Las Vegas, back home to Robertson, and finishes up the regular season with these district games.

NOTES: The Lady Horsemen got some valuable long kicks from senior defender/fullback Logan Hunt, senior midfielder/defender Lauryn Pecos is back with them after missing last season because of knee surgery, and Gorman had six saves and Crawford 11.

Prep senior midfielder Madelerine Mena had two of her team’s shots and Hirsch-Arnett had the other that included her goal. It was an array of players who came away with the St. Michael’s shots. Lady Horsemen have now defeated Socorro three straight times, twice this season and in the 2020 title game.