Freshman forward Alexis Weaver and the Cougars will have the chance to stretch their win streak to four games when they open up their Conference USA schedule against Memphis on Friday at Robertson Stadium. | Aaron Cisneros/The Daily Cougar
The Cougars notched their third consecutive win of the season when they downed the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns 2-0 Friday at Robertson Stadium.
After starting the season with five straight losses, the Cougars have improved to 3-5-0 on the season.
Head coach Susan Bush said she was impressed with the effort given by the Cougars’ attack Friday.
“Wins build confidence,” she said. “We still have things we need to work on, but I thought we looked good in this game.”
Freshman forward Kelsey Zamora scored her third goal of the season on a through pass in the 24th minute. Racing up the left wing, the freshman forward chipped the ball over ULL goalkeeper Amanda Moorefield to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead.
The advantage remained for the first half as the Cougars continued to apply pressure, but were unable to break through a resilient Ragin’ Cajun defense until after the half.
“The past two weeks we’ve come together as a team and done a lot of team bonding stuff,” Zamora said.
“That shows on the field that we’re being a team. We know how to play and who to play to.”
In the second half, UH continued to push forward as the ULL defense began to tire.
The Cougars’ form began to show as their passes became crisper.
The Cougars consistently held the ball in their opponents’ half of the pitch and registered a season high 22 shots for the game.
“We strung our passes together and created all kinds of different chances,” Bush said. “We weren’t predictable in the attack.
“Now we just have to finish more of our 22 shots.”
The Cougars breathed a collective sigh of relief in the 83rd minute when sophomore forward Sami Sackos found freshman forward Alexis Weaver in the open field with one defender to beat the defender at the top of the 18 and drove the ball into the top right corner for her second tally of the season.
Sophomore goalkeeper Cami Koski registered her third straight shutout of the season, but the Cougar defense made her job easy as the ULL offense struggled producing only four shots, none of which were on goal.
“The defense holds a tight line in the back,” Koski said. “I do what I have to do, but the defense pretty much keeps me in the clear.”
The victory marked the end of a difficult non-conference schedule for the Cougars.
However, the road will not get any easier for the squad as they open conference play against the defending Conference USA champions Memphis on Friday at Robertson Stadium. The game kicks off at 7 p.m.
