Rams Fall in Final-Minute Drama to Pioneers

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Determination, grit, and physical conditions were the mantra of the game Sunday afternoon. For Colorado State, a mixture of blood, sweat and tears were seen on the bench and on the field. Ultimately, the sacrifices made weren't enough to push it past Denver.

In the final minute of play, the Pioneers and Rams were each searching for their own game-winner when a long ball over the Rams' defense fell perfectly for the Pioneers' Sami Feller to loop it over goalkeeper Emilie Gavillet for the victory. While it injured Feller, it was a huge sacrifice to give her side the win.

For the Rams, the 2-1 defeat ends a three-match point streak and is their first loss since a 3-0 decision at the hands of the Utah Utes on August 21. While it was looking like a second-straight draw for the Rams, they could not hold on for all 90 minutes to end level.

"We're both trying to push to get a goal; they capitalized on our mistakes," coach Keeley Hagen said. "We had some unforced errors; proud of how hard we played, but bottom line is we have to clean up our mistakes."

The mistakes started early for the Rams when Gavillet mishandled the ball just inside her 18-yard box and gave a freebie opening goal to Feller. It put the Rams on the back foot early and clawing their way back into it from the fifth minute and beyond.

The Rams were continuously looking for forwards Liv Layton and Aleyse Evers on the through ball beyond the Pioneers defensive line. While Layton struggled with the big defenders the Pioneers had, the size and strength Evers had would be critical to getting the equalizer in the 23^rdminute coming off the bench.

"Every player has got to step up, whether they're starting or not," Hagen said. "All of our subs' are impact players; she (Evers) came in and made an impact. It's really good to see the training transfer onto the field. We just need to see more areas of training now to transfer as we progress."

While drawing level for the majority of the game, the physicality never stopped. In the first half, both teams combined for seven total fouls. Plenty of warnings were given while no cards came out of the pockets just yet for either side.

While the physical play was high, the possession was even for each side as the halftime whistle blew. However, the Pioneers would jump ahead in the second half turning up the levels a notch with a disallowed goal of their own thanks to a handball in the build-up. The lack of a good start for the Rams in the second half was noticeable and frustrating.

"We've got to string more minutes in together. The first half I was pleased overall but the start of the second half I was not pleased," Hagen said. "We started to find our rhythm deeper into the second half; we've got to create more shots on goal and credit to Denver, who kept pounding us and they got one in at the end."

In the second half, the pounding from both the Rams and Pioneers escalated. The match saw three yellow cards in the final 45 minutes, with the first going to Lily O'Grady from the Pioneers. Her side gave up seven fouls in the second half which only bubbled up the tension and drama between the two sides for the rest of the match.

Those Pioneers' fouls hurt the Rams, one of which gave Kenady Leighton a bloody nose midway through the half. Another collision left the already wrapped up Izzy Wildermuth limping and taken off the field for a short period of time. While fighting through the pain, it's something the Rams are accustomed to doing and know is part of their connection.

"We're getting better organized as a team; we're making little adjustments here and there based off of our opponents and our players are responding to that" Hagen said. "Defense requires discipline and when you lack it a little bit, sometimes teams take advantage of it and that's what happened to us today."

The loss also brings an end to the shutout streak Gavillet had acquired over the previous two games. She kept the ball out of the net for an elapsed time of 225 minutes since her last goal given against South Dakota on August 25.

Gavillet was given a yellow card on the goal in the 90^th minute after colliding with Feller who was sliding for the goal. She and the rest of her team have a lot to debunk from this match. In a game which saw the Rams have five shots with only one shot on goal, seven fouls in total, and some messy play here and there. It's going to take a lot of thought of what happens next in training before hitting the road for the next four games.

"We just need to put in more quality action soccer minutes together," Hagen said. "It's just trying to be more consistent; we're going to shore up our offensive movement and have a better plan before we get the ball. Defensively, we'll work on our one-on-one duels and making sure we're closing the gaps and seams so that teams just have to kick it which is a success for us."

Next up for the Rams is a trip to Manhattan, Kansas to face the Wildcats of Kansas State. Kickoff for this second-to-last non-conference game of the year for the Rams is Thursday at 6 p.m.

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