CANYON– The No. 11 Texas A&M University-Commerce soccer team fell 2-1 to West Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon. The Lions scored a goal in the eighth minute but gave up a goal in the first half and a late goal in the second half.
 
The loss brings the Lions to 4-1-2 on the season and 1-1-0 in the Lone Star Conference. The Lady Buffs improve to 3-2-2 and 1-0-1 in the LSC.
 
The Lions will next return home for a Wednesday match against Texas Woman's. The match will be played at 7 p.m. at the Lion Soccer Field.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Sabrina Munguia scored a goal in the eighth minute on an assist from Sophie Haywood. It was Munguia's second goal of the weekend. She had two shots on goal.
- WT had seven shots on goal while A&M-Commerce had five.
- Delaney Bunselmeyer had two shots on goal. Haywood also had a shot on goal.
- Caitlin Duty made five saves in the match.
- The Lions were called offsides four times, one of which nullified a goal in the 25th minute.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions had two shots go wide in the first two minutes of the match as A&M-Commerce controlled the ball early. After a Lion throw in, Haywood found Munguia for a goal in the eighth minute. The Lions also had two offside penalties go against them as the team aggressively attacked WT's defense.
 
The Lions continued to dominate possession early on as Bunselmeyer had a shot on goal in the 20th minute. However, this one was saved by the WT keeper, keeping the score at 1-0 in favor of the Lions.
 
WT finally had a chance for a goal in the 23rd minute. A cross pass eluded the Lion defense and set up a shot opportunity. However, Duty was there to make the save and keep the Lady Buffs off of the scoreboard.
 
A series of events changed the narrative of the match. In the 25th minute, the Lions looked to have a second goal but an offside call was issued. WT took the ball and quickly made its way down the field and found the net to tie the match at 1-1 in the 26th minute.
 
The Lions had an opportunity in the 39th minute for a goal. Munguia found some room to get off a shot but WT's goalkeeper was able to make the save and keep the match tied. The Lady Buffs had an opportunity late in the half for a goal but Duty came up with a save and the match was tied at 1-1 at halftime.
 
The Lions have an early opportunity for a goal in the 49th minute of the match. Bunselmeyer found some room and fired a shot that was saved. The Lions also had a corner kick that was headed just wide and the match remained tied.
 
WT had a chance that went wide in the 59th minute. Another attack from the Lady Buffs was saved by Duty in the 61st minute and the match still was tied with 30 minutes to play.
 
Both team played tight defense in the late stages of the half as neither team had many chances to get a shot off for the go-ahead goal. The Lions finally found a chance in the 80th minute. Haywood had a breakaway but the goalkeeper left the net and slid in front of the ball, taking it away. WT proceeded to run the other way and found the go-ahead goal in the 81st minute.
 
The Lions made two late substitutions to get fresh legs on the field to get a tying goal, and even had Duty leave the net to join the attack. However, the WT defense held on and escaped with the win.