SAN ANTONIO — It reads like a movie script: on Senior Day, an injured senior dresses out for the first time in almost two months, starts the game and gets open for the initial goal 26 seconds in.
Hollywood became reality on Sunday afternoon for the St. Mary's University Women's Soccer team as senior
Sydney Varela (El Paso, Texas) came out of medical retirement, was honored prior to the game along with the other eight seniors, and scored on the opening possession on a pass across the box from junior
Elena Kossler (Ötztal-Bahnhof, Austria) 26 seconds after opening kickoff as the Rattlers exploded for a 5-1 win over Eastern New Mexico at Cornerstone Christian Stadium.
Kossler took over after that, scoring the remaining four goals, getting two assists from sophomore
Anabelle Rodriguez (San Antonio) and one from
Marily Garza Contreras (Duncanville, Texas). Kossler tied the school single-match record for goals, tying Kelly Felts (2004) and Alexis Lawrence (2021). She now has 12 goals on the season, moving her into a tie for fourth on the single-season charts.
The Rattlers (6-5-3, 5-4-2) completely dominated the contest, outshooting the Greyhounds (0-14, 0-11) 29-to-1 in the game, and took all nine corner kicks. StMU placed 15 of its 29 shots on goal, and Rosie Willmott Joyce made 10 saves.
Before the game,
Bella Brigman (San Antonio),
Haley Faucette (Burlington, S.C.),
Natalia Garcia (Helotes, Texas),
Valerie Hover (McKinney, Texas),
Shelby Paniagua (Cibolo, Texas),
Ana Parra (San Antonio),
Gabriela Varela (San Antonio),
Sydney Varela and
Abigail Wilson (Tomball, Texas) were honored for their commitment to the sport and St. Mary's.
With three matches remaining in the regular season, the win moves St. Mary's into sixth place in the Lone Star Conference standings (UT Dallas and Sul Ross State are ineligible for postseason play). The top eight qualify for the LSC Tournament, which begins on Nov. 7.
The Rattlers return to Sigma Beta Chi field on Wednesday for a Lone Star contest against Texas A&M International at 5 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the men's team. The Dustdevils are coming off a 3-0 win at Sul Ross State on Saturday.
