BOX SCORE
ALEXANDRIA, La. - Prairie View A&M soccer coach Abe Garcia said in the days leading up to the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament that his players were confident they could compete with any team.
They rode a three-game win streak into Thursday's first-round game against top-seeded Jackson State and upset the defending conference champions in a 2-1 overtime thriller.
“I thought our team was capable of beating anybody in the SWAC,” Garcia said. “It felt great to knock off the defending champs. It gives us more motivation to keep playing at this level.”
The Lady Panthers will advance to the semi-finals thanks, in part, to the legs of junior Yosselyn Aguilar. She scored a goal with an assist from freshman Reina Mata in the 75th-minute to tie the game at 1-1.
Aguilar then kicked in the game-winning goal in the 99th-minute on a cross from freshman Nahuacali Romo-Lara. That golden goal in the overtime period was the highlight of the night for Aguilar, who set the tempo for the Lady Panthers with six shots on goal.
“It was good for us to fight back from being down,” Garcia said. “We kept our head in the game until the end and it paid off.”
Prairie View A&M will play Mississippi Valley State Friday evening at 6 p.m. The Lady Panthers lost to Mississippi Valley State in a 1-0 game, but should head in confident considering they out-shot them 16-8 on Oct. 14.
