Liga MX Femenil recap - Week 16

Cruz Azul 1, Querétaro 1: A fairly even game that did neither team any favors in their Liguilla quest. Querétaro got the lead in the 29th minute when Guillermina Martínez gave possession away to Alejandra Tapia. Tapia took a touch and fired a shot that seemed to catch goalkeeper Karla Morales by surprise, as Morales jumped and got her hands onto the shot but knocked it into her own net. After the half, Cruz Azul pressured for a goal and was rewarded in the 65th minute when Itzel Cruz made a run down the right side of the pitch and hit a cross into the box. Alejandra Curiel was in the perfect position and her header beat Ivette Alvarado for the game’s equalizing goal. Cruz Azul is now six points out of a Liguilla spot while at nine points back Querétaro are eliminated from contention.

Toluca 2, UNAM Pumas 1: Toluca hangs on to the eighth spot on the Liguilla table and eliminates one of their rivals in the process, downing Pumas 2-1. It didn’t start off all that well for Toluca however, as in the seventh minute a Pumas free kick made its way through traffic and Mariel Román redirected it past her own goalkeeper to give Pumas the lead. In the 72nd minute Karime Abud would tie it up against her old team when she was played through and hit a shot that beat goalkeeper Melany Villeda. Then just two minutes later Nayeli Carvajal hit a free kick straight off of the training ground that put Toluca up for good. Toluca hangs on to their eighth place spot and creates some separation between them and the teams immediately below them while Pumas now must focus on next year.

América 3, Necaxa 0: América keeps pace with the pack with a 3-0 victory over winless Necaxa. Daniela Espinosa slipped past the Necaxa defense in the eighth minute and hit a shot that beat goalkeeper Balbina Treviño to give Las Águilas the lead for good. América would keep pressing the issue and get a second goal just before halftime when Alondra González made a run and hit a shot just inside of the box. Treviño made the stop but gave up a rebound that went right to Alexia Villanueva, who knocked it into the back of the net. Then in the 54th minute Villanueva got her second when it was Espinosa who hit a shot at Treviño and Villanueva was there to knock in the rebound. América remains in a three-way tie with Atlas and Tijuana for fourth place with 28 points while Necaxa still has just two points on the season.

Puebla 0, Monterrey 1: Puebla played well but in the end it was Rayadas pulling out the win, eliminating Puebla from Liguilla contention. The play was even until the 85th minute when Alicia Cervantes was played in on goal. Her initial shot was stopped by Brissa Rangel, but the rebound fell to the turf and before the ball rolled out of bounds Cervantes was able to get off another shot which banked in off of defender María López to give Rayadas their 13th win of the season. Monterrey is now five points clear of Tigres with both teams having three games remaining.

Tigres UANL 1, León 0: Another game that was decided late as Tigres kept their slim superlíder hopes alive. In the 73rd minute Karen Luna was able to corral a bouncing ball and hit a shot from outside of the box that beat Maricruz González. While Tigres was able to stay mathematically alive in the superlíder race, León is long since out of the Liguilla race.

Santos Laguna 1, Atlético San Luis 1:Another good result for both clubs, who while eliminated from this Liguilla could be Liguilla contenders next season. Santos got on the board first when in the eighth minute Estella “Paleta” Gómez scored for the hosts. Belkis Escalante equalized for Atleti in the 57th minute.

Pachuca 3, Veracruz 2: Pachuca downs Veracruz to stay within striking distance of second place Tigres, while Veracruz does as best as they can considering the formidable circumstances surrounding the club at the moment. Just before the half Viridiana Salazar fought for a ball in the box, getting it and cutting back to lose the two defenders that were on her to create space. She passed it back to an onrushing Karla Nieto, whose shot went past María Ayala for the first goal of the evening. Viri would get one of her own in the 62nd when Ana López hit a great cross over to Gloria Narváez, who passed it back to an open Salazar. Salazar’s shot from close range gave Ayala no shot at stopping it. But Veracruz came back and in the 68th got a goal when Citlalli Valencia hit a great ball over the top and Casandra Montero redirected it as goalkeeper Alejandria Godínez was going the opposite way. Then in the very next minute Liliana Hernández was played in over the top, drew Godínez out off of her line, and then calmly hit the ball into the back of the net to tie the match. Deep into stoppage time, Ana López crashed into Paloma Velázquez going after a loose ball, knocking her into Ayala. López was able to recover first and knock the ball in for the winning goal.

Guadalajara 2, Morelia 0: A huge blow to Morelia’s Liguilla hopes as Chivas stays within striking distance of a top four finish. Yashira Barrientos was the hero of the match, scoring both goals for Chivas. Her first came in the first minute when she was played in, drawing out goalkeeper Diana García and poking the ball up and over and in. Then later a minute after the start of the second half, Barrientos got her head on a corner kick and knocked it in for the insurance goal.

Juárez 0, Tijuana 3: Xolos Femenil continues to make a case for themselves being a dark horse contender as they down Juárez 3-0. Casandra Cuevas put Xolos on the board in the 35th when she hit a beautiful bicycle kick on a pass in from Renae Cuellar. Cuellar would score in the 65th when Karen Maprigat had a great run and shot the ball. Goalkeeper Silvia Machuca made a save but Cuellar was there to put the rebound home for her tenth goal of the season. She’d get her eleventh goal in the 69th minute when she got her head to a corner kick at the far post. It wasn’t all smiles for Tijuana as Leyla Zapata picked up a red card in the 84th minute, Still, Tijuana got the three points to stay level with Atlas and América for fourth place while Juárez will look to next season.

Bye week: Atlas

Next week:

Sunday, October 27:

UNAM Pumas (4W 6D 5L) vs. Atlas (6W 7D 2L)

Puebla (5W 4D 7L) vs. Cruz Azul (6W 3D 6L)

Querétaro (5W 4D 7L) vs. Toluca (8W 4D 4L)

Monday, October 28:

Necaxa (0W 2D 13L) vs. Santos Laguna (4W 4D 7L)

Morelia (6W 3D 6L) vs. Pachuca (10W 2D 3L)

Veracruz (2W 5D 8L) vs. Juárez (1W 3D 11L)

León (4W 4D 7L) vs. Tijuana (8W 4D 3L)

Tigres UANL (10W 4D 1L) vs. América (8W 4D 3L)

Monterrey (13W 0D 2L) vs. Guadalajara (8W 3D 4L)

Bye week: Atlético San Luis (2W 4D 10L)