DURANGO, Colo. – Newcomers Andy Holder and
Lexi De La Cruz tallied goals, while the Lady Chap defense shut down Western Colorado in the second half, giving LCU the 3-0 victory over the Mountaineers to start the 2022 season.
The scoring started early for the Lady Chaps (1-0), as
Avery Jennings found De La Cruz in the 13
th minute in front of the net to give Lubbock Christian the 1-0 advantage.
The Mountaineers (0-1) recorded their first shot of the contest in the 8
th minute, before a shot in the 23
rd minute by Mary Wilson was saved by Abby Kone. That was all the offense WCU could muster, as the Lady Chaps held Western Colorado without a shot attempt for the final 67 minutes of game action.
After a slow start to the second half for both teams, De La Cruz found herself one-on-one in front of the goalkeeper in the 77
th minute, firing a laser of a shot past the Mountaineer keeper's head to put the Lady Chaps up 2-0 and earn the brace in her LCU debut.
Just six minutes later, De La Cruz would become the distributor, finding fellow newcomer Holder in the box and the freshman finished off Western Colorado with her first career collegiate goal and gave LCU the 3-0 shutout victory in Durango.
De La Cruz finished the evening with two goals and one assist for a total of five points. The Lubbock native recorded three shots, all three of those being on goal. Holder's goal came on her only shot of the contest.
Despite being listed as a midfielder, Kone started the contest in net for the Lady Chaps, recording one save and earning her first career shutout and going the full 90 minutes.
Madison Mayben and
Kenley Blevins also went the full 90 minutes at Dirks Field in Durango.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The shutout is the first time the Lady Chaps have held an opponent scoreless in their season opener since Aug. 31, 2017, when LCU defeated Texas Permian Basin 4-0 to kickoff the 2017 campaign.
- The Lady Chaps defense held Western Colorado without a shot in the entire second half, the first time LCU has done so to an opponent since Oct. 19, 2019, against Texas A&M-International. Lubbock Christian knocked off the Dust Devils 2-0, outshooting TAMIU 20-1 overall and 8-0 in the first half.
- LCU entered the contest having scored zero goals all time against Western Colorado. The Lady Chaps were shut out 5-0 and 1-0 in their prior contests with the Mountaineers.
- The Lady Chaps have now won three straight season openers. LCU knocked off Texas Permian Basin 2-1 to open the Spring 2021 ledger and defeated New Mexico Highlands 4-1 to begin the Fall 2021 season.
UP NEXT
The Lady Chaps will stay in Durango, Colo. to face the Fort Lewis Skyhawks on Saturday, Aug. 27. Kickoff is set for 2:30 PM. For more information, keep it locked and loaded at lcuchaps.com.