TMU in 1st place after road win

The Master's women's soccer team got one goal from Cynthia Ramos in the 75th minute but that was enough as they defeated Vanguard 1-0 Saturday in Costa Mesa, Calif.

 The Mustangs (8-2-2, 3-0-1 GSAC) now sit alone on top of the conference. In their four GSAC games, TMU has allowed a goal and out-scored their opponents 13-0.

Injuries forced the coaching staff to make some adjustments at the start of the game, but that plan didn't come together they way they hoped.

"Initially it didn't work, so we went to another game plan and that was the answer," said Head Coach Esteban Chavez. "Alyssa Hopewell really changed our attack. She gave us so much moving forward it allowed us to pin them back."

The changes were evident on the stat sheet. After The Master's were out-shot 4-3 in the first half, the second half saw the Lady Mustangs with a decided 9-3 advantage in shots.

"I am very happy with the response the girls had in the second half," Chavez said. "We jumped on that team and took over the game. Instead of being upset, (The Master's players) owned accountability, and that turned it into a very very good second half."

Ramos' goal came from sheer creativity and persistence. After losing control of the ball, she fought to get it back and then ripped it into the upper corner of the net for the unassisted difference maker.

"She made something out of nothing," Chavez said. "That was nothing less than her working harder than anyone else to get that goal."

Ramos finished with five shots, Sinclair Francescon took three, with Kate Merical and Ellie Radmilovich firing off two each.

The Master's will next travel to Fullerton on Thursday to take on Hope International. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.