The winless Arizona soccer team will host two games this weekend against Pac-12 Conference foes Oregon. The Wildcats play the Ducks at 7 p.m. and Oregon State on Sunday at noon.
Against Colorado and Utah last weekend, the Wildcats had arguably their most successful weekend, as they scored three goals. Unfortunately, those goals did not produce any wins as Arizona tied Colorado 2-2 and lost to Utah 3-1. In head coach Lisa Oyen’s eyes, the team made some progress, despite the fact that it remains winless at 0-9-2.
“We made some positive progress. We scored three goals on the weekend, which was good. We had to deal with a number of injuries but everyone did well to work through,” Oyen said.
Injuries have been a problem recently for the Wildcats, and Oyen believes that is a primary reason for some of the recent struggles.
“We have some players that are dealing with illness and injuries right now,” Oyen said. “It’s that time of the year where they break down. They’re just trying to keep themselves healthy. The injuries affect our ability to play well as an entire unit, and we had to make changes in areas we normally don’t make changes.”
Despite the injuries, there were still a few standout performers for the Wildcats. Juniors Susana Melendez and Jessica Culver both scored goals against Colorado, and sophomore Ana-Maria Montoya scored Arizona’s only goal against Utah. Oyen praised Culver, Montoya and junior defender Alex Smith for their performances last weekend.
Arizona will need the rest of the team to step up if it hopes to end its eight-game winless streak in the Pac-12, dating back to last season.