Oct. 24, 2010
Final Stats
Box Score In PDF Format 
HUNTINGTON, W. Va.- The UTEP soccer team dug itself an early hole and could never bounce back in an eventual 3-0 loss at Marshall on Sunday.
Erica Duncan (3:22) and Angela Desumma (9:45) afforded the Thundering Herd (6-8-3, 4-5-1 C-USA) a 2-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the match. The Miners (10-8-0, 3-7-0 C-USA) settled down nicely after the strikes but were unable to get back into the contest. Desumma tacked on an insurance tally (64:22) to cap the scoring for the day.
Junior goalkeeper Chandra Morden played well in net, coming up with eight stops. UTEP racked up 21 shots (four on goal) while earning six corner kicks only to have Marshall goalkeeper Lexa Hughes keep a clean sheet.
Morden was called upon early, coming up with a save on a blast by Sarah Vinson at 1:07. The visiting side launched a counter attack, where Melissa Desilets' rocketed a shot over the net at 2:03.
MU then went back on the offensive, with Desumma being stoned by Morden. The rebound came out to Duncan, though, who coerced the loose change into the back of the net at 3:22.
UTEP did not panic despite the early deficit. Rather, it regrouped in an attempt to knot the contest. Off a corner kick Tess Hall played a ball to a cutting Tori Martyn. The freshman leapt and hammered a header, which cruelly clanked off the crossbar at 5:20.
Sensing that the Thundering Herd were on their heels, the Miners intensified their attack. Anoop Josan lasered a shot high at 6:16 while Katie Dorman forced Hughes to make a stop at 7:04. Martyn had some space to work with two minutes later, but her shot was blocked. Desilets chased down the errant ball, only to have her shot deflected by the MU defense. Hall managed to get it before MU could clear the zone, but her attempt was high at 9:09.
Having somehow survived the flurry without allowing a goal, Marshall headed back up the pitch with aspirations of doubling its lead. The push led to a breakaway for Duncan. Morden raced off the line to make a stop, but the ball went out to Desumma. She put it away into the far left corner to make the score 2-0 in favor of the home side at 9:45.
UTEP continued to play hard over the remained of the first period, hoping to slice into the deficit before the break. Dorman tested Hughes at 43:18 while Hall did the same at 44:26, but both times the keeper was up to the task.
Pace of play was slowed over the first 15 minutes of the second half, with a more physical nature setting in. The two teams were tagged for a combined seven fouls in the stretch. UTEP managed to generate some chances during the sequence, but could not convert.
A Brittany Kindzierski attempt was off the mark at 53:05, while Martyn's shot was blocked at 61:38 and Dorman's shot whistled high at 62:28.
The close calls loomed larger when the Thundering Herd recorded an insurance strike at 64:11. Miscommunication by the defense sent Duncan in alone, and this time she managed to best Morden.
UTEP fought hard down the stretch, generating a quartet of corner kicks while taking three shots.
The Miners will wrap up the three-game road swing while concluding their 2010 regular season at Colorado College at 7 p.m. MT on Friday.
