The first two goals of
Kayla Sims' collegiate soccer career demonstrated dual aspects of her ample ability.
Sims, who spent her first four years at The Master's University playing volleyball, scored on a laser from 20 yards out in Saturday's first half. Twenty-five seconds later, she controlled a long
Seren Tamayo pass with her head, then pounded it past Kansas Wesleyan's keeper. It was all the Mustangs would need in a 2-1 win over the 21st-ranked Coyotes.
Master's goalie
Lacey Lehman made the goals stand up by saving a Kansas Wesleyan penalty kick late in the second half, and the Mustangs improved to 3-1-1, beating a ranked opponent for the first time this season.
Sims did the heavy lifting, scoring twice in the 17th minute.
"Kayla was a beast," said TMU coach
Curtis Lewis, "especially in the first half. We've been telling her she needs to shoot, and she finally did. What a bomb."
On Sims' second goal, she ran onto Tamayo's towering pass, watched it bounce, then headed it out in front of herself before shooting – all with a Coyote defender on her hip.
"(That was) another part of her game. She is such a strong girl and hard to knock off the ball," Lewis said.
Sims' efforts were part of a vast improvement from the Mustang attack overall. After scoring one goal in its last 200 minutes of soccer, Master's played with energy and organization on offense. It outshot the Coyotes 8-0 in the first half and 14-3 in the game.
"Our team has been working on possession," said Sims, "and to come out from the first whistle and keep possession almost the entire game was really cool to see."
Kansas Wesleyan made things interesting in the 70th minute when Paige Robinson launched a shot that redirected off a Master's defender and into the net. Moments later, the Coyotes (0-1-1) earned a penalty kick and an opportunity to tie.
Lehman was up the challenge, though, blocking Krysta Catone's shot and saving the Mustangs from playing what would have been their second straight overtime game on a blistering hot afternoon.
"Lacey made a great save to rescue the momentum back," said Lewis, who felt his team struggled to mentally execute in the second half but still dominated most of the period.
For Sims, it was the kind of performance Lewis envisioned when she decided to join the team during spring workouts. Sims, who climbed to No. 2 on TMU's all-time volleyball assists ledger, retained eligibility in soccer and returned to TMU this fall to finish her undergrad degree. Soccer was not foreign to her.
In high school, she was a three-time Alaska state champion, scoring 22 goals with 11 assists as a senior. Though she decided at the last minute to play volleyball in college, she never truly lost her love for soccer – even if the transition back to the sport has been challenging at times.
"The biggest challenge was getting my movement down again," she said. "In volleyball, you're not physically going against another team. It's different learning how to use your body again and getting your first touch back. I'm still working on both of those things."
Saturday was a clear sign of progress.
