Soccer: Montoya Scores Four Goals to Lead Cajuns Past Texas State

Nick Ross, October 18, 2013

Contact: Nick Ross
 
LAFAYETTE, La. – Yazmin Montoya scored the first four goals of the match to lead the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns to a 5-2 victory over Texas State, and improved them to 8-5-2 overall and 5-1 in Sun Belt action, for a share of the conference lead with Western Kentucky.
 
"I’m proud of their effort tonight," Wieland said after the game.  "The girls have been working hard during practice and there has been a lot of energy at trainings.  There was a lot of energy today and they worked really hard together. It was a great team effort.  We did the things we have been working on and they did."
 
It was the second match all-time, and second this season, that a member of the Ragin’ Cajuns scored four goals.  Annika Schmidt did so against Prairie View A&M on Sept. 13.
 
"[Montoya] has had some sweet goals up until this point," Wieland said of Montoya.  "They put their best player to mark Schmidt.  When you do that, [Montoya] is going to hurt you.  The goals she put in were beautiful tonight and it was a great performance.  There is not much else you can say, it was just pretty soccer."
 
Montoya’s goals came in the ninth, 29th, 31st and 55th minutes of the contest, all in succession.
 
"We were all getting pumped up for this game," Montoya said after the match.  "We were anticipating a really good game tonight and the atmosphere in the locker room and of a good team, it helped us go out and score some goals."
 
She now has 10 goals and five assists on the season, taking over the team lead from Schmidt, and setting the all-time record for points in a season.  The freshmen duo now holds the record for goals in a season together, at 10 a piece.
 
"It feels amazing," Montoya said of her 25-point season so far.  "This team has come so far.  They were trying to man-mark [Schmidt] because they know she is a good player, but we have more players on this team who can put the ball in the net.  Everyone played great today and it showed."
 
The scoring got started when Tina Sanchez had the ball about 30 yards away from the goal.  Sanchez sent a forward pass in the air, and Montoya stayed onsides to get a head on the ball and send it over the keepers’ head.
 
She would add to the lead 20 minutes later with a hard shot from about 30-yards out.  The shot went directly into the upper right corner of the net to make it a 2-0 lead.
 
Her third goal came exactly 98 seconds later.  MacKenzie Higgins brought the ball down the sideline and sent a hard cross right to Montoya who knocked it home for the hat trick.
 
It was the first time in school history that a member of the Ragin’ Cajuns registered a hat trick in the first half.
 
That wouldn’t be the end for Montoya, however.  She added another goal in the 55th minute.  She found a lose ball close to the goal-mouth and knocked it in, marking her fourth of the game.
 
The Bobcats wouldn’t give up, adding a goal of their own in the 66th minute. Landry Lowe scored her first goal of the season with a long shot that beat Cajuns second-half keeper Kendall Graham.  Landry took the shot from the left side and crossed it over to the right post for the goal.
 
Senior Shelby Isley added to the Cajuns’ lead in the 74th minute, with her fifth goal of the season and 14th of her career.   Isley picked the ball up close to the goal line and ran it into the box and beat the keeper to make it 5-1, Cajuns lead.
 
She now has 40 points in her career.
 
The Bobcats cut the lead in the 85th minute, when Clarissa Leon got a pass in the middle from Gabbi Cottee, and beat Graham on a breakaway shot.
 
The Cajuns win moves them to 5-1 in Sun Belt action, and are now tied with Western Kentucky for the top position in the Conference.
 
"We are trying not to think about positioning and where we are," Wieland said after the game.  "We need to worry about South Alabama.  They are a very good team and we have worked hard to get ourselves into a good spot.  As far as that goes we are just worrying about the next game."
 
 The Cajuns have now won seven of their last eight games, dating back to September 13th.
 
Louisiana has two more games remaining before the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.  They will travel to South Alabama on Thursday, October 24, and then finish the regular season up at home on Sunday, October 27 for Senior Day against Troy, at 1 p.m.