The Raiders’ women’s soccer team faced off against Los Angeles Valley College at their home game on Sept. 20. Both teams walked away that day with a 1-1 tie.

Moorpark College’s women’s soccer team had earned tied scores in the past two games, with a record of 1-3-3, so the team was looking to do more to push themselves back into the winning column.

Captain Skylar Rusch, a sophomore defender who played all 90 minutes in the previous game, spoke about how frustrating ending a game in a tie can be and what the team’s mindset was going into this game.

“If we all communicate together and all have a unified mentality to go after our opponents, then that will motivate us and we will be stronger than any other team moving forward,” Rusch said.

Control of the ball continued to be passed back and forth between the two teams as Raiders looked to secure a win at home. Both teams were able to score a goal within the first 45 minutes, showing the girls’ fight and the desire to win.

Haley Lucas, a sophomore defender, scored the first goal for the Raiders. It was Lucas’s first goal of the season. Lucas spoke about how she was able to come through for her team after LA Valley had secured the first goal.

“I missed that first goal and saw a second chance,” Lucas said. “I thought that I had better put that one in [the goal] for my team.”

The second half of the game began with an injury for Raiders captain Skylar Rusch, but goalie Natalie Romero was able to save three shots on goal in the second half, keeping the Raiders in a place to pull ahead.

As tensions soared heading into the end of the second half, Los Angeles Valley goalie Cynthia Femat-Gomez suffered an injury and was replaced within the game’s final minutes.

With two significant injuries occurring during the 90 minutes, both teams made an aggressive final push to put their group in the win column for their programs and their injured teammates.

Unfortunately, the Raiders couldn’t capitalize on their goalies’ impressive second half performance as the game ended with a 1-1 tie, putting the Raiders at a 1-3-4 record and a streak of three ties in a row for the season.

Head Coach Matt Crater spoke about the harsh season results for his team so far but also emphasized his team’s work ethic and motivation regardless of the results.

“Those are things you can’t teach,” Crater said. “They bring that effort and motivation regardless of the game’s outcome or the score. The effort and motivation is super important.”

Moorpark once again tied on Sept. 23 after their game against West Los Angeles College, bringing the Raiders’ record to 1-3-5. Moorpark will play at Oxnard College on Tuesday, Sept. 27 at 4 p.m. For the complete Raider Women’s Soccer schedule, click here.