Lopez powers Waseca to soccer win over Fairmont Area

FAIRMONT - A dozen goals in a half-dozen soccer games thus far this fall.

Waseca sophomore striker Gabriela Lopez unleashed a season's-best five goals to power the visiting Bluejays to a 6-1 Big South Conference victory over the Fairmont Area Cardinals on Tuesday night.

The Mercurial Lopez lit up the scoreboard at Jeffery Kot Soccer Complex early and often to add to her pre-match seasonal totals of seven goals in five outings.

"I've been playing on the varsity since seventh grade, but playing in a premier league in Eden Prairie during the summer really improved my overall game," said Lopez.

Senior forward Samantha Azure, who delivered two goals during the Bluejays' 3-2 win over the Cardinals only one week ago in Waseca, utilized her vapor-trail velocity to set the uptempo pace off the kickoff.

Azure took a pass along the right sideline, sped past a Fairmont Area defender, rushed the right wing and laced a perfect crossing pass to Lopez on the left doorstep for the twine-finding tap-in only 30 seconds into the match.

Kate Busche and Anna Utermarck, however, responded to the challenge by working a perfectly-placed corner kick for the equalizer. Utermarck lofted a curl from the flag and Busche headed the high-bouncer into the top part of the cage for a 1-all tie with 36:22 remaining.

Lopez, however, answered 6 minutes later and Waseca never trailed again. The Bluejay sophomore speedster corraled an overpass along the left wing, drove the lane and hammered a shot by a diving Madi Stromberg for the go-ahead tally.

Addison Wieseler then literally made a heads-up play to give Waseca a two-goal lead by intermission. Evelyn Nydegger lofted a bounding pass from the corner to the middle of the box and Wieseler elevated to head the ball into the net for a 3-1 lead at the 13:51 mark.

Stromberg, who finished with a game-best 10 saves, kept the Cardinals' deficit at two by stonewalling Lopez on a pair of athletic stops. Lopez worked a left-wing rush off a Wieseler pass and drilled a grass-hugging burner that Stromberg smothered at the 8-minute juncture. Azure nearly had another assist right before halftime when she filtered a crossing pass to Lopez, but Stromberg extended her frame to tip away Lopez's shot with 2 minutes left.

However, it was all Lopez during the second half. Waseca's sophomore sensation utilized her speed by tracking down Wieseler's perfect lead pass over the defense and chipped in a breakaway 1-on-1 shot for a 4-1 lead at the 38-minute mark.

Lopez booted a chip shot into the right top shelf off an Azure assist at the 23:08 juncture before capping her five-goal eruption with an unassisted goal at 18:00.

"We moved Sam (Azure) into a midfielder's role and she did a great job of coordinating our offense tonight," said Waseca head coach Kyle Tomlinson.

Elayna Anderson nearly tallied a second goal for Fairmont Area, but Waseca netminder Ella Bulfer made the eighth and final save of her night with 11:30 left in regulation. Anderson worked the left end-line and uncorked a rising liner toward the cage that Bulfer made a leaping catch on.

"Their keeper (Bulfer) moved her feet well and always was in the right position to make the stop tonight," said Fairmont Area head coach Matt Nielsen. "It was impressive that she was playing in a 6-1 game like it was a 0-0 contest."

Fairmont Area (2-3) plays host to Marshall at 7 p.m. Thursday night at Jeffery Kot Soccer Complex in Fairmont. Waseca (5-1) travels to Mankato Loyola on Thursday for a 5 p.m. match.

Waseca 3-3-6

Fairmont 1-0-1

Scoring Plays

1st Half

WAS-Gabriela Lopez (Samantha Azure), 39:30.

FMT-Kate Busche (Anna Utermarck), 36:22.

WAS-Gabriela Lopez (unassisted), 30:17.

WAS-Addison Wieseler (Evelyn Nydegger), 13:51.

2nd Half

WAS-Gabriela Lopez (Addison Wieseler), 38:00.

WAS-Gabriela Lopez (Samantha Azure), 23:08.

WAS-Gabriela Lopez (unassisted), 18:00.

Shots-on-goal: Waseca 9-7-16; Fairmont Area 4-5-9. Corners: Fairmont Area 4; Waseca 3.

Saves: Madi Stromberg (FMT) 10; Ella Bulfer (WAS) 8.

Karissa Newville netted two goals and netkeeper Mary Bennett pitched a shutout to power Fairmont Area to a 2-0 victory over Waseca during junior varsity action Tuesday night in Fairmont.

Newville converted a pass from Alex Martin into the Cardinals' initial goal before Newville added an unassisted score.

Bennett recorded 13 saves to earn the victory for Fairmont Area.

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Boys Soccer

Waseca 3, Fairmont Area 1 -- The Bluejays netted all three of their goals during the opening 40 minutes to eventually claim a 3-1 Big South Conference win over the visiting Cardinals on Tuesday night in Waseca.

Prince Lebbi prevented a Waseca shutout by driving home a free kick for a Fairmont Area goal at the 24:37 juncture of the second half.

Waseca outshot Fairmont by a 10-6 margin.

Fairmont Area (1-3-1) travels to Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall on Thursday to face the hometown Tigers.