In their final home game of the season, the Arizona Wildcats defeated the Kansas State Wildcats by a score of 5-1 on Sunday at Mulcahy Stadium.
With only one game remaining in the regular season, Arizona (10-5-2, 5-4-1 Big 12) desperately needed a bounce-back performance after Thursday night’s 4-0 drubbing at the hands of the Kansas Jayhawks at Mulcahy.
This is the Wildcats’ first 10-win season since 2019.
Arizona got off to a hot start Sunday when senior forward Nicole Dallin scored in just the second minute of regulation. But Kansas State (3-11-3, 0-8-2) would quickly respond with a goal of its own merely seven minutes later.
To Arizona’s credit, it did not shrink from moment as was typical of the Wildcats over the past few games. Instead, Arizona rose to the occasion.
It was a true team effort. Arizona’s seniors, in particular, led the charge to victory, as they were responsible for Arizona’s first three goals.
In the 17th minute, co-captain Megan Chelf rose above the defender, marking her to steer in a header, putting Arizona back into the driver’s seat.
Forward Nyota Katembo was knocked down in the box in the 30th minute, earning Arizona a penalty and Kansas a yellow card. Co-captain Gianna Christiansen stepped up to bury the penalty, scoring her eighth goal of the season. She and Dallin are tied for the lead as Arizona’s top goal contributors, each with eight goals and four assists.
Arizona went into the half holding a 3-1 lead, but remained relentless, arguably playing even better in the second half.
“The second half is basically the start of a new game,” Chelf said. “You have the chance to reevaluate and readjust if something isn’t working, so we were expecting them to make some adjustments. With that in mind, coming out flat [in the second half] wasn’t really an option, and I think that showed.”
“Not taking our foot off the gas was something we talked about in the locker room at half time, kind of taking them by the throat and not letting them breathe, not letting them feel like the game was winnable,” Dallin added.
Freshman forward Narissa Fults kept applying pressure on Kansas State’s defense, scoring a tap in in the 53rd minute, before junior Maia Brown concluded the scoring with a headed goal 10 minutes later. It was Brown’s first goal of the season.
Following the game, Arizona Head Coach Becca Moros was complimentary of her team’s performance, although she is seeking more consistency.
“We needed a response in this game (after Thursday’s loss),” Moros said. “We’ve had some really strong performances and then we’ve followed them up by sliding backwards. I’m not talking about the scoreline, but our play on the field today is probably a little more representative of our normal performances versus the big spikes we saw five or so games ago and the big drop off we’ve seen in the two or three games before this one.
“Going into the postseason, everyone wants the strongest performances they can give. You’re not gonna become a different team in the next two weeks, so we need to make sure that the best of what we’ve shown this season comes out when it matters the most.”
Arizona concludes the regular season by going on the road to face in-state rival Arizona State at 7 p.m. on Friday.
The postseason Big 12 soccer event at Kansas City beginning Oct. 30 will feature the top 12 teams in the conference standings.
Arizona will finish the regular season no worse than eighth place in its first season in the Big 12.
The conference tournament will be at CPKC Stadium, home of the Kansas City Current. Eleven matches will be played between Oct. 30 and Nov. 9. Tickets will be sold exclusively via SeatGeek here.
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