NWC WOMEN WIN SEASON OPENER

BY SETH ROMSA TRIBUNE SPORTS WRITER
Courtesy of the Powell Tribune

Heading on a long road trip last Friday to Scottsbluff, Nebraska, the Northwest College women's soccer team opened the season against Western Nebraska, overcoming two deficits with a come-from-behind 4-2 victory over the Cougars.  

NORTHWEST 4, WESTERN NEBRASKA 2
Making the long road trip to Nebraska affected the Trappers (1-0) early against the Cougars (0-2).

"I thought we were slow, thought we were lethargic, thought we looked like we played three games before we played them," coach Rob Hill said.

The Trappers' slow first half led to success for the Cougars, who found the back of the net on a corner kick to make it 1-0 with 11 minutes left.

Northwest found its attack and the back of the net before the halftime whistle, when Tessa Hyland scored on a free kick with six minutes left to make it 1-1.

In the second half, the Cougars regained the lead on a similar play, when a free kick soared into the back of the net 14 minutes into the half and made it 2-1 — Western Nebraska converted its only two shots on target the entire game.

Continuing to trail late, the Trappers finally found their legs, starting with a goal from Nayelli Aguayo with 15 minutes left. She placed it perfectly over the keeper to make it 2-2.

Just six minutes later the Trappers found their winner, when Pressly Taylor slotted it home to make it 3-2.

Capping off the late comeback, the Trappers added an insurance goal from Brooke Travers with just two minutes left to make the final score 4-2.

Northwest outshot Western Nebraska 22-2 in the contest. Hill said the Trappers need to take better advantage of their opportunities if they hope to compete down the line in conference action.

"I think we need to have a little bit more tempo, set the speed of play, set the tempo for us, otherwise we're not going to be very consistent," Hill said. "We talked about that at the end of the game, about being consistent and that means playing at a certain level, regardless of who the opponent was. So I think there were lots of lessons there on mindset, mentality and intensity of play. The quality is there. We have to increase our finishing percentage-wise there, as tonight (Tuesday) we worked on finishing."    

UTAH ROAD TRIP
Northwest now heads out on the road this weekend, taking on opponents in Utah on Friday and Saturday.

That will start with a trip to Price, Utah, to take on Utah State University Eastern (1-0-1) at 11 a.m.

The Trappers will then take on Truckee Meadows (0-0) of Reno, Nevada, at 3 p.m. on Saturday in Salt Lake City.

"Very tough the next two games on the road," Hill said. "They will press us high, they'll be high tempo, very athletic … We're traveling 10 hours for those games so it's never easy. I think it'll be our biggest test so far, and I think it will tell us where we're at, whether they'll be able to compete in the region or not. I think the girls are capable of it."

After the long road trip, the Trappers will return home after Labor Day and take on North Idaho College (1-1) at home at 2 p.m. on Tuesday.   

NORTHWEST 4, WESTERN NEBRASKA 2
Goals — Tessa Hyland 1, Nayelli Aguayo 1, Pressly Taylor 1, Brooke Travers 1
Assists — Riley Noles 1, Nayelli Aguayo 1, Savannah Morton