LAKEWOOD, Colo. Natsuki Murakami answered a late Colorado Christian University goal just 50 seconds later, driving a penalty kick opportunity into the lower right corner that enabled visiting Western Colorado to play to a 1-1 draw Sunday in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference contest with the Cougars.
JUST THE FACTS
Final score: Western ties CCU, 1-1
Records: Western 4-9-4 overall (3-5-3 RMAC), CCU 6-7-3 (5-4-2)
Location: Trailblazer Stadium, Lakewood, Colo.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Jordan Welsh was approaching a pass into the box but was sandwiched between the Cougar goalkeeper and a CCU defender at the 83:58 mark in the game, drawing a foul and a PK chance just 50 seconds after the Cougars had scored a go-ahead goal at the other end of the field.
- Murakami approached the PK spot and while goalie Alana Lopp was guessing one way, Murakami went the other way, pushing a hard shot inside the right post to score her third goal of the season.
- The Cougars, who with a win would clinch a spot in the postseason RMAC tournament, desperately tried to score the game winner in the closing minutes, but Western goalie Aubree Orosco made saves on both of the Cougars' late, dangerous opportunities to keep the scoreboard knotted at the final horn.
TURF NOTES
- Western was the offensive aggressor over the initial 45 minutes, leading not just in total shots, 11-8, but more importantly in shots on goal, 5-0.
- The Cougars turned the tables over the final 45, though, racking up a 16-4 shots advantage and an 8-4 shots on goal edge.
- CCU played a physical game throughout, accumulating 14 fouls and a pair of yellow cards compared to Western's 3 fouls and 1 yellow.
- Orosco would finish with seven saves, while CCU's Lopp would make eight.
PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS / NEXT UP
- While CCU needed to win the game to clinch a playoff berth, Western, with Sunday's draw, must now win its season finale at Fort Lewis College while also hoping for neither Fort Lewis nor Regis University to earn one point in either Sunday's or Wednesday's games.
- Western will play Fort Lewis in an afternoon game in Durango, Colo., on Wednesday.
