LAFAYETTE – Lily Parker scored her first career goal and newcomer Maria Reyes added an insurance goal to lead the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns soccer team to a 2-0 win over in-state opponent Nicholls on Thursday at the Home Bank Soccer and Track Complex.
Natalie Mayes and Ally Allen combined to pitch the first shutout of the season for Louisiana (3-1-1), which held a 25-4 advantage in shots and improved to 11-3 all-time against Nicholls (1-2-2).
Parker, playing in her 38th career game for Louisiana, played a ball down the left side and lofted a left-footed shot over Nicholls’ goalkeeper Aislinn Wright into the upper-right corner to give the Ragin’ Cajuns a 1-0 lead in the 32nd minute. Miku Kurihara and Kendal Green each added shots on-goal for Louisiana with Wright recording saves on both attempts.
Louisiana dialed up the pressure in the second half with a 17-3 advantage in shots with Wright collecting five of her seven saves in the final 45 minutes. Wright stopped a pair of early attempts by Carson Glenn in the first 10 minutes of the second half before the Cajuns got insurance.
A ball off the foot of Louisiana’s Liv Harding caromed off the right post and Reyes collected it and scored into the lower left corner of the goal early in the 58th minute for a 2-0 advantage.
Mayes earned her first win of the season and 16th of her career as she faced one shot in the first 45 minutes. Allen relieved Mayes for the second straight match to start the second half and stopped an attempt by Nicholls’ Angelina Rispone in the 89th minute.
Louisiana will close out its opening month of play when it travels to face in-state rival McNeese (3-2-0) in a 5 p.m. contest in Lake Charles. The match will be available on ESPN+.
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