The women’s soccer team suffered a 1-0 loss against Angelo State University on Friday night at the last home game of the season, leaving its playoffs fate to the other teams in the Lone Star Conference.
“That’s the best team in the conference,” head coach Damian Clarke said.
With the loss against ASU, Clarke said the team’s spot in the playoff tournament is bleak. It has to rely on the outcome of the game between Texas Women’s University and West Texas A&M to determine if it makes playoffs.
“Texas Women’s has to lose to West Texas,” Clarke said. “If they do we’re in. If they draw or win, we’re out.”
Clarke said as a team that is trying to learn to play a certain way, their passing piece, which is what they hope to pride their self on at some point, let them down during the game to cause them to lose to ASU.
“It’s down to me as a coach. I’ve got to do a better job and I will,” he said.
Exercise physiology sophomore Alyssa Parkhill, an outside midfielder, said losing an important conference game was hard as it hurts the team’s chances for playoffs.
“It kinda sucks because it would’ve been nice if we could work our way up to at least win this game and know we had a spot in the tournament, but we have to wait and see what happens,” she said.
Parkill said the team is going to work extra hard in practice and do whatever it takes to make it.
“If we get into the tournament our goal is to win and be conference champions,” she said.
The team was especially disappointed to lose on its senior night and last home game.
“It’s sad especially because it’s senior night and everyone likes playing at home because it’s the home field and you get the advantage and most of everyone’s family comes out,” said Liz Navarette, business marketing sophomore and left defender. “It’s just sad that it will be a while before we play here again.”
Last year Navarette suffered from a torn ACL injury that kept her on the bench for the entire season.
“I didn’t play any so my parents didn’t get to come see me play,” Navarette said. “This year they tried their hardest to make it out to every single game to see me play.”
Navarette said it means a lot when people come out to the game to support the team. She said that losing an important game in front of an important crowd was exceptionally tough as they have a rough road ahead of them.
“Since we didn’t win the game we have to rely on other teams scores now to get into playoffs so that’s the only way it’s going to happen for us,” she said.
Clarke said the team will continue to work hard in practice in preparation for a chance in playoffs.
“If we make it that’ll do enough to get us going,” he said. “I don’t think there’s anything we can do when our destiny is not in our own hands so I think we take it easy and hope West Texas does us a favor.”
