Liga MX Femenil recap: 2021 Clausura, Week 6

Doble jornadas are always tough, but the flip side of that is that they’re great opportunities for teams to gain some quick points and momentum. This was no different, and to top if off we got to see some good performances from a couple of young goalkeepers.

FC Juárez 1, Club Tijuana 2: Maybe Tijuana has finally turned a corner? After losing 1-0 to both Toluca and Atlas they’re now undefeated in their last three, destroying Atlético San Luis 5-3, drawing Mazatlán FC 0-0 and now beating Juárez 2-1. Rosa Aguiar put Tijuana up in the 10th minute on a blast from distance that caught goalkeeper Alondra Ubaldo out of position. Both teams played relatively well and Juárez pulled one back in the 64th when Tijuana’s defense was carved open by a through ball to Atzimba Casas. Casas beat Itzel González one-on-one for her second goal of the season. But Renae Cuéllar drew a penalty and then converted it in the 88th minute to pull out the win for Xolos Femenil.

América 1, León 1: América continues to stumble, having to come from behind to tie León at home. In the 10th minute Yazmin Álvarez created a turnover close to the goal and the ball went straight to Lucero Cuevas. Cuevas made her former team pay, beating Natalia Acuña to the far post with a hard, low shot. Cuevas had a couple of good opportunities throughout the game but couldn’t capitalize on more. León looked to have doubled their lead in the 72nd but prior to the shot going in the ball went out over the end line and the referee got the call right and awarded a goal kick. América battled back and it paid off in the 75th when Montserrrat Hernández got to a great cross and hit a hard left-footed shot for the equalizer.

Mazatlán FC 0, Monterrey 3: Monterrey did as expected, downing Mazatlán 3-0. Diana Evangelista got her second goal in the 14th minute on a ridiculous golazo from a tough angle, super-sub Aylin Aviléz got her sixth in the 77th minute on almost the same exact shot, and Christina Burkenroad got her second of the season in the 80th on a header from close range. With both Alex Godínez and Claudia Lozoya out injured, 16 year old Mariana Caballero got her first clean sheet in her first start of her career.

Puebla F.C. 0, Atlas 1: Puebla has been one of the tougher teams to break down defensively, but Atlas was ultimately able to find a way to get their fifth win of the season at Estadio Cuauhtémoc. Adriana “Boyi” Iturbide almost got her first goal of the season but was unlucky, hitting the post in the 23rd minute. Brissa Rangel made a great stop on a free kick in the 40th, and looked like she’d get a clean sheet until Alison González was taken down in the box in the 75th minute. “Aligol” converted the penalty for her league-leading seventh goal of the season to keep her team tied for the league lead with Pumas.

Cruz Azul 0, UNAM Pumas 2: After being thoroughly outplayed in the first half, Pumas was able to make adjustments and get the better of Cruz Azul thanks to two late goals. Dirce Delgado’s first of the year in the 85th minute was the reward for Pumas’ ability to not only prevent Cruz Azul from creating much of anything after the break but also keep pushing for a goal while on the road. Marlyn Campa also got her second goal of the season off of the bench in the 89th minute for Pumas, who stay in the superlíder position over Atlas on goal differential.

Guadalajara 3, Club Atlético de San Luis 0: An expected dominant performance by Chivas as they beat Atleti 3-0. Chivas had good opportunities early on and finally broke through in the 35th minute on Miriam Castillo’s header off of a corner kick. Licha Cervantes got her third goal of the season in the 57th, getting to a rebound of a shot that hit off of the crossbar and then ricocheted into the back of San Luis goalkeeper Stefani Jiménez. Annette Vázquez picked up her second goal of the season in the 62nd to complete the scoring for Chivas, who broke a two game winless streak. Goalkeeper Celeste Espino got her first shutout of the season, getting the start for Blanca Félix who was out with COVID-19.

Tigres UANL 2, Necaxa 0: A different night and it could have been a much larger margin of victory for the home side. Tigres had a couple chances that just wouldn’t go in, missing by inches or smashing off of the woodwork. Katty “Killer” Martínez finally broke the deadlock with her fifth goal of the season in the 46th minute when she got to a great ball forward from Stefany Mayor. Katty Killer returned the favor in stoppage when she played Mayor in and Mayor got her third goal of the season.

Santos Laguna 1, Gallos Blancos de Querétaro 2: A decent outing by Santos but Querétaro continues to improve week in and week out. Santos looked to be on the front foot most of the early portions of the match but in the 26th minute were carved open by a quick counterattack that left Lizette Rodríguez to score in a one-on-one situation with goalkeeper Wendy Toledo. Maritza Maldonado got her third goal of the season on a shot that took several deflections on its way to goal in the 71st. Santos was able to get one back from Anahí Rentería in the 73rd when Querétaro was unable to clear out a corner kick, but it wouldn’t be enough for the hosts.

Pachuca 2, Toluca 0: All good things must come to an end, and Toluca’s hot start to the season finally ran into some cold water courtesy of Toña Is and Pachuca. Viri Salazar got her third goal in two games, capitalizing on a poor back pass by the Toluca defense in the fourth minute. Paola López doubled the lead in the 24th minute on a header in the box, handing Toluca their first loss of the season.

Next week (all records are in W-D-L format):

Friday, February 12:

Necaxa (0-1-5) vs. Guadalajara (4-1-1) - Claro Sports (Mexico) - 4:00 PM Central

Gallos Blancos de Querétaro (2-1-3) vs. América (2-3-1) -TVC Deportes (Mexico) - 5:00 PM Central

Saturday, February 13:

Atlas (5-1-0) vs. Santos Laguna (1-0-4) - TVC Deportes (Mexico) - 10:00 AM Central

UNAM Pumas (5-1-0) vs. Pachuca (2-2-2) - TUDN (US and Mexico) - 12:00 PM Central

Sunday, February 14:

Monterrey (5-0-1) vs. FC Juárez (0-1-5) - 10:30 AM Central

Club Atlético de San Luis (0-1-5) vs. Mazatlán FC (2-2-2) - 5:00 PM Central

Monday, February 15:

Toluca (4-1-1) vs. Cruz Azul (2-2-2) - TUDN (US and Mexico) - 3:45 PM Central

León (2-2-2) vs. Tigres UANL (4-1-1) - FOX Sports (Mexico) - 5:00 PM Central

Club Tijuana (2-1-3) vs. Puebla F.C. (0-1-4) - FOX Sports - 7:00 PM Central