The Colorado soccer team improved to 5-0-0 on the season with a 2-0 win over Austin Peay on Thursday in a game delayed 70 minutes because of lightning in the area.
The pace of play was slow and inconsistent when the teams finally did return to the field. After a rushed second warm-up period play began without any ceremony. Colorado took control late in the half, tilting the field. CU was buzzing in the final minutes of the period but could not break through by the half.
“It’s a dangerous game you know with the [70-minute] delay. You’d like to come out well but we didn’t. Give credit to Austin Peay. I have a lot of respect for their coach,” head coach Danny Sanchez said. “I knew they’d be ready to play. They are a good team. They got one of their better players back last game and she did well today. The first half was sloppy and slow. I thought that second half was much better. We created a lot more chances. We are still missing that cutting edge in front of goal. That extra clean touch. At the end of the day, it’s a 2-0 win at home. I’m glad we got the game in before it got dark. It gives us a little more rest for Baylor on Sunday.”
Freshman Roo Yarnell-Williams continued to impress for the Buffaloes. She came off the bench and picked up her second goal of the season. Her play continued to be strong late in the match, sending a dangerous ball into the box that resulted in an own goal and a two-goal lead for the Buffs.
“I just think that we wanted to win and knew that we had to win today. There was the delay today, so we were a little bit more hesitant coming out,” Yarnell Williams said. “We just wanted to win, this was a big game, this affects us getting into the NCAA Tournament.”
Hannah Sharts helped get the goal started, throwing the ball into the near post from the CU sideline. The ball deflected off of two Austin Peay defender’s heads and right to a waiting Yarnell-Williams on the back post. Yarnell-Williams sent the ball back across the box into the lower right corner to give the Buffs the advantage.
It was another strong offensive push by Yarnell-Williams that provided the insurance-goal late for the Buffs. She ran down the right of the goal box and sent a strong center into the middle of the box. A bad clear attempt for Austin Peay ended up directly in the net, sealing the victory.
Another former Big 12 rival comes to town on Sunday when the Buffs host Baylor (1 p.m.).
Colorado 2, Austin Peay 0
Austin Peay 0 0 — 0
Colorado 0 2 — 2
Goals — CU: Roo Yarnell-Williams, 63rd minute; Team goal, 87th minute
Goalies — AP: Mary Parker Powell 90-2-4; CU: JJ Tompkins 90-0-2
