Taylor Culver scored the game winner for Lady Yotes over NNU
CALDWELL, Idaho - Goals by Brittany Lacey and Taylor Culver in the final three minutes helped The College of Idaho stun rival Northwest Nazarene, as the Lady Yotes opened the 2011 women’s soccer season with a 3-2 victory over the Crusaders at Syringa Middle School.
NNU (1-1) broke a 1-1 tie with less than 15 minutes remaining, as Erika Kristensen scored off a feed from Autumn Yturbe, with Yturbe nearly making it 3-1 with nine minutes left, as she clanked a shot off the left post.
The Lady Yotes (1-0), who held a commanding 24-7 shot advantage, made their perseverance pay off, as Chelsea Heffner sent a ball into the box to find Lacey, who allowed a Crusader defender to pass, before roping home the tying goal. With less than 40 seconds left, a free kick was played into Heffner, who headed the ball to Culver, paused and rocketed a shot into the net.
Yturbe got the Division II Crusaders on the board in the 22nd minute, taking a pass from Kristensen and finding the net, but the Coyotes countered, as Alex Suggs took a pass from Culver and scored just before the intermission.
Aimee Pierson, in her collegiate debut, made three second half saves for the Lady Yotes to earn the win, while Tanya Zickefoose made nine saves in the loss for NNU. It was the third-straight season that The C of I has defeated their Canyon County rivals.
The Yotes return to action on Thursday, meeting Trinity Lutheran at 5:30 p.m.