Aggies Secure a Shutout Victory Over Liberty, Breaking Nation’s Longest Unbeaten Streak – Top

Box Score LYNCHBURG, Va. – Coming into the season, Liberty and NM State were projected to finish first and second in the CUSA Preseason Poll. Through the first couple weeks of the conference season, that is exactly where the two teams stood – The Aggies in first place with a 3-0 CUSA record, and the Flames in second with a 2-0 mark.
 
In a battle between the two remaining undefeated teams in CUSA, NM State (7-5-1, 4-0 CUSA) went into Osborne Stadium and toppled Liberty (11-1-0, 2-1 CUSA) 2-0. This snaps the nation’s longest unbeaten streak at 24 games and knocks off the last undefeated team in the country.
 
Bianca Chacon’s freekick bounced around till it found the knee of Brooke Schultz for the Aggies’ first goal of the night, while Loma McNeese fired a cross-bodied shot to find the back of the net and extend the Crimson & White lead. Megan Ormson and Ariana Leamons recorded their first assists of the season, with Bianca Chacon credited for her team-leading seventh helper.
 
FIRST HALF
The action started early with both teams eager to prove themselves in conference play. Less than a minute into the contest, Liberty fired a shot from the top of the goal box, going wide over Aggie goalkeeper Valerie Guha’s head.
 
Preseason CUSA Player of the Year Loma McNeese put up the first shot of the contest for the Aggies, firing a straight line shot to the Flames’ net, though a defender was able to get in front of it and deflect the ball out of bounds.
 
The physicality from both squads became evident early, as neither team could find a rhythm on offense. Liberty repeatedly poked and prodded at the NM State defense, attempting to fire long passes over the Aggie defenders to attack the redshirt freshman Guha.
 
In the 19^th minute, the Flames possessed their best opportunity in the first half, getting the ball to Ava Goodman directly in front of the NM State goal. Connecting on a cross with her right foot, the shot went wide left and hit the post, rebounding away and allowing NM State to cleanly clear it.
 
Following a foul by Liberty defender Sallie Garner, Bianca Chacon lined up near the Aggie bench to take a free kick. Already proving herself to be dangerous on free kicks this season, it proved no different when Chacon fired the ball into a bevy of Aggies and Flames, finding the head of Megan Ormson, who put the ball on the far left post. Putting it in position for Brooke Schultz to put it through the back of the goal with her knee, the goal gave NM State a 1-0 edge. The goal also ended Liberty’s five-match streak of shutouts, which started following the teams’ 2-0 victory over Marshall on September 10.
 
Trying to claw their way to a goal before the break, Liberty earned their first corner kick of the match with just three minutes remaining in the first half. Coming into the contest, the Flames had averaged six corners per contest. At the break, NM State led in shots (6-5) and shots on goal (3-1), while tied on corner kicks (1-1).
 
Clock issues at Osborne Stadium delayed the start of the second half, allowing both teams extra rest in a very tough and physical matchup.
 
SECOND HALF
Looking to get their offense going early in half number two, Mya Hammack was forced to draw a yellow card with a hard tug on a Flames’ jersey moments into the second half – though Liberty was unable to capitalize on the opportunity.
 
Liberty got their first good look in the second half on a free kick from the right side of the field, with multiple players crashing down to attack the goal. The Flames were called for the first offside penalty on either side, stifling their chance at an equalizer.
 
NM State played with a slowed pace in the second half, aiming to take care of the ball and keep their 1-0 advantage on the road. In an already physical matchup, the Aggies ratcheted up the defensive intensity in the second half, using their size and strength to overpower the Flames.
 
Loma McNeese extended the NM State lead with a shot from a few yards inside the box, firing a right-footed shot that rocketed past the Liberty goalie. Coming into the contest, Liberty allowed just three goals all season, with no more than one allowed in any contest.
 
 
NUMBERS OF NOTE

• 24 – Coming into the match, Liberty held the nation’s longest unbeaten streak – a 24-game stretch dating back to September 11, 2022 when the Flames lost 3-2 against Pitt.
• 7 – With her free kick that converted into a Brooke Schultz goal, Bianca Chacon now sports seven assists during the 2023 season, three more than Loma McNeese, currently second on the squad with four assists. For her career, the junior from El Paso now totes 16 helpers, the most in program history.
• 5 – With her goal in the 26^th minute, Brooke Schultz joined Bianca Chacon as the only members of the Crimson & White to score goals in back-to-back games this season. Now sporting five goals in her NM State career, this is also Schultz’s first time scoring back-to-back goals in her career.
• 4 – NM State currently holds a four-game winning streak, all coming during CUSA action and improving the team’s overall record to 7-5-1. This is the Aggies’ best start to conference play in program history, surpassing a 3-0-1 mark set in the inaugural 2009 campaign.
• 1 – Megan Ormson and Ariana Leamons assisted on both NM State goals on Saturday, becoming the seventh and eighth Aggies to tally assists on the season, joining Bianca Chacon, Loma McNeese, Meredith Scott, Brooke Schultz and Sydnee Johnson. Ormson has now recorded an assist in three of her four campaigns in the Crimson & White, while also touting nine career goals. 
• 0 – Aggie goalkeeper Valerie Guha recorded her second shutout of the season, and second in her last three contests – both on the road. Guha kept the Flames scoreless for the first time since October 16, 2022 while allowing just two shots on goal.

For complete coverage of NM State Soccer, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of Aggie athletics – and follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWSOC), Instagram (@NMStateWSOC), and like us on Facebook (NMStateWSOC).
 

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