The New Mexico State Women’s Soccer team opened the season with a thrilling 2-1 victory in double-overtime over the UTEP Miners Friday afternoon in front of a sold-out NMSU Soccer Complex. The win marked the first ever for the Aggies in the Battle of I-10, having lost the first six meetings of the rivalry since becoming a program in 2009.

The Aggies (1-0) started slow offensively, staying scoreless for the majority of regulation. A defensive lapse in the first period allowed UTEP (0-1) forward Danielle Carreon to drive in the Miners’ lone goal of the game, causing NMSU to fall into an early deficit. The strong defensive pressure applied by Head Coach Freddy Delgado and the Aggies, coupled with goalkeeper Dmitri Fong’s 7 saves would stymie UTEP’s offense, holding them scoreless for the remainder of the game.

“We had thought that we were playing pretty well and then we made a mistake,” Delgado said of the lone goal NMSU surrendered. “UTEP kept pressing us but we went into the half feeling like we played pretty well. We kept pushing and it took us 87 minutes to get the first goal but we kept pressing and finally got the equalizer.”

NMSU’s offense shifted gears after halftime, attempting 15 shots in the second period and overtime compared to just 4 in the first. That aggressive attack would pay off in the form of a clutch goal by senior Forward Devin Hart off of an assist from Junior Audriana Chavez in the 87’ of regulation, tying things up at 1-1.

“This is the first time in our history that we have beaten UTEP, and you can only have so many “firsts” as a program,” Delgado said. “This group is very deserving of getting that first win.”

It looked like the game would end in a draw as the clock showed only minutes remaining in the second overtime period until junior Aileen Galicia set Chavez up to score one of her own, sealing the program’s first win over rival UTEP in its history and starting the 2017 season off with a victory.

“This is just one step closer towards our goal, but we are also taking it one game at a time and trying to not look at the bigger picture,” senior defender Cristina Bertoldo said. “We are happy we won, but tomorrow it is a whole new focus towards Northern Illinois.”

Delgado’s squad brings a load of experience into this season, returning 20 players from last year’s team, including Bertoldo, and he believes that the returners have bought into what he is selling.

“Two years ago, we brought in 16 freshmen and we took some licks. We had some rough times but we kept a long-term vision and knew if we stayed on track with those players, they would turn into leaders.

The Aggies hope to improve on the 5-13-2 record from last year to develop a winning culture, and topping a bitter rival in UTEP is an excellent start. NMSU will now hit the road for the first time this season on Sunday at NIU.