Liga MX Femenil recap: 2021 Clausura, Week 15

Some important matches this past week, with Rayadas and Pumas joining the ranks of the teams in the Liguilla while Santos, Tijuana, and León seeing their Liguilla chances dwindle to zero.

Cruz Azul 0, Guadalajara 1: Perhaps the marquee matchup of the week as Chivas gets a deserved win on the road against Cruz Azul. Chivas had plenty of chances and finally broke through in the 87th when Carolina Jaramillo converted a penalty after Joseline Montoya was taken down in the box. Chivas remain three points behind Tigres for the top spot in the league while Cruz Azul stay in eighth place, one point ahead of América.

Atlas 3, Necaxa 1: The first 80 minutes of the game were even and rather calm. The last ten were anything but, as Atlas wins 3-1. Necaxa got on the board first in the 83rd minute when Estef Hérnandez broke the tie by converting a chance on a breakaway. Atlas tied it in the 87th when Alison González redirected a cross past Lupita Olvera. Then in the 88th, Paola García broke past the defense and knocked one past Olvera, and then a minute later González did almost the same thing for her second goal of the morning. Atlas are tied on points with Chivas but are 12 behind on goal differential. Necaxa can take heart that they held one of the best teams to the fire for almost the entire match.

Mazatlán FC 0, Pachuca 2: Mazatlán looked like they might get a 0-0 draw out of this, but two great goals from Tuzos Femenil sealed their fate. Alice Soto hit a wonderful free kick in the 82nd minute and Karen Díaz had a fantastic header that seemed to float into the back of the net in the 88th to give Pachuca their seventh win of the season and put them within one point of clinching a spot in the Liguilla. Mazatlán are still mathematically alive, however they’ll need to win out and have Cruz Azul lose out to make it in.

UNAM Pumas 3, Gallos Blancos de Querétaro 2: A wild one in CU as Pumas outlast Querétaro. Dania Padilla took a short corner and hit an off-balance shot off of the underside of the crossbar to put Pumas up in the third minute. Querétaro equalized in the 36th when Alonda Camargo headed in a corner kick. Marlyn Campa picked up her fourth goal of the season in the 39th, knocking in the rebound of a shot stopped by Ruth Arana. After the break, Maritza Maldonado managed to stay onside and get to a through ball and knock one in to draw Querétaro level once again in the 48th minute. Pumas got the game-winner in the 64th when a turnover went to Liliana Rodríguez, who hit an absolutely brilliant ball to Jaquelín García. García beat her mark to it and knocket it in past Arana, who had come way off of her line. Pumas qualified for the Liguilla with the win while Querétaro struggles in their second season under Carla Rossi.

Toluca 1, Santos Laguna 0: A tough, physical game that Toluca was able to pull out in the final ten minutes. Both teams had some decent looks at goal, but the physicality of the play kept the pace relatively slow and certainly disjointed. Yamanic Martínez’ goal in the 83rd was the difference when she was left in space and hit a cross in past Wendy Toledo. Toluca is in the Liguilla with a win or if América doesn’t win while Santos is mathematically eliminated from the postseason.

León 3, Club Atlético de San Luis 2: San Luis jumped out to a two goal lead but León was able to come back and get the 3-2 win in León. Citlali opened the scoring for San Luis in the fifth minute, and Fany Izaguirre doubled it in the 35th. Yazmín Álvarez drew one back for León in the 40th, and then after the half it was Dani Calderón tying it in the 65th and Sonia Vázquez getting the game winner in the 70th.

Monterrey 1, América 1: Both teams had plenty of chances but ultimately each could only convert on one and the match ended in a draw. Nicole Pérez picked up her second goal in the 32nd minute when she got a perfect touch on a cross from Dani Solís. Mayra Pelayo drew one back in the 57th on a good second-effort chip to net her third of the season. Rayadas clinch a spot in the Liguilla with the result while América stays alive in the race, a single point behind Cruz Azul who they will face this coming week.

Club Tijuana 0, Tigres UANL 1: Perhaps not as comfortable a result as Tigres would have wanted, but they nonetheless picked up their eleventh win of the season. While Tigres controlled most of the rest of the match, Belén Cruz capitalized on a rare mistake from goalkeeper Itzel González in the 14th minute for the game’s only score. Tigres remain atop the league, ahead of Chivas by three points. Tijuana meanwhile is now eliminated from Liguilla contention.

FC Juárez 1, Puebla F.C. 2: A nailbiter between two teams that have been out of the Liguilla hunt for a while. Juárez got on the board first when Atzimba Casas was able to outrace her mark, knock the ball away from goalkeeper Siena Ruelas, evade a defender, and score her fourth of the season. Lupita Worbis got her fifth of the season in the 25th when she converted a penalty, and Majo López got the game winner in stoppage when she hit a long shot that Juárez goalkeeper Alondra Ubaldo misplayed.

Next week (all records are in W-D-L format, all times as listed):

Thursday, April 22:

Gallos Blancos de Querétaro (4-1-10) vs. Club Tijuana (4-3-8) - 5:00 PM - TVC Deportes (Mexico)

Friday, April 23:

Necaxa (3-4-8) vs. Pachuca (8-3-4) - 4:00 PM - Claro Sports (Mexico)

Saturday, April 24:

UNAM Pumas (8-4-3) vs. Atlas (10-3-2) - 12:00 PM - TUDN (United States and Mexico)

Sunday, April 25:

Club América (5-6-4) vs. Cruz Azul (6-4-5) - 12:00 PM - TUDN (United States and Mexico)

Monday, April 26:

Club Atlético de San Luis (2-5-8) vs. Toluca (7-5-3) - 5:00 PM

Guadalajara (10-3-2) vs. Monterrey (9-3-3) - 5:00 PM - FOX Sports (Mexico); Telemundo Deportes (United States)

Santos Laguna (3-5-7) vs. FC Juárez (2-3-10) - 7:00 PM - FOX Sports (Mexico)

León (4-2-9) vs. Puebla F.C. (2-4-9) - 7:00 PM

Tigres UANL (11-3-1) vs. Mazatlán FC (4-5-6) - 7:00 PM - TUDN (Mexico)