Author: Thomas Lagrone
UAB women’s soccer team won a thriller on senior night 2-1 over UTEP.
Before the game, there was a ceremony to honor the seniors on the UAB women’s soccer team: Lexxe Lipsey, Audria Wood, Betsy Ornelas, Lucy Thrasher and Brenda Bishop. The ceremony included a video message from the entire UAB team, which contained numerous heartfelt messages.
For the seniors on the team, the night was filled with joy and sadness.
“It’s hard, it’s really really bittersweet seeing it come to an end,” said senior forward Lexxe Lipsey. “But I’m thankful that, you know, we get a chance to go to conference tournament… and I’m just really thankful that I got to be a part of all this.”
The first half of the game did not have a goal, but UAB’s attack was relentless. The Blazers had eight shots while UTEP was held shotless. The Blazers dominated possession for the first 45 minutes with the Minters lucky to even get the ball away from their goal and across the halfway line.
UAB kept the pressure up for a majority of the second half, as they had 13 more shots. Seven different players took shots, but the UTEP goalkeeper collected 10 saves throughout the game to keep it close.
The game remained scoreless until the 73rd minute. On UAB’s 15th shot of the game, the crowd erupted as Asha Zuniga scored a header from a Jessica Wheeler corner kick.
After the goal, the Miners began to play with desperation and started to push the ball downfield. All four of UTEP’s second half shots came in the final 15 minutes. They were able to convert on their fourth shot by scoring a goal in the 89th minute. Kristen Prevosto received a pass from a free kick and was able to find the back of the net, which even the score at 1-1.
Lipsey tried to find a goal in the dying seconds of regulation, but she was unable to score. Both teams found some opportunities during the first overtime, but neither were able to find the game winning goal.
Within the first minute of the second overtime, UAB scored and took the win over UTEP 2-1. The goal began near the corner flag, as UAB’s Wood dribbled past two UTEP defenders. Wood passed to Laura Zemberyova who shot the ball on target, but it was blocked. Lipsey acquired the rebound and found a sprinting Lizzie Hill, and she placed the ball into the bottom corner.
With the victory, UAB advances to 4-3-1 in conference play and finishes the regular season with 13 points. The Blazers climbed from 5th to 3rd in the western division.
UAB women’s soccer team will return to play in the Conference USA tournament. The team will face Western Kentucky in a quarterfinal matchup on Nov. 3 at 5:30 p.m. in Boca Raton, Fla. The tournament is available to stream on ESPN+.
