New Bulldog goalkeeper Kristina Anguiano sets up to block a goal shot against Pahrump Valley Friday night, Aug. 26 during the Mesquite Cup soccer tournament. Anguiano had six saves for the Dawgs. Photo by Lou Martin

New Bulldog goalkeeper Kristina Anguiano sets up to block a goal shot against Pahrump Valley Friday night, Aug. 26 during the Mesquite Cup soccer tournament. Anguiano had six saves for the Dawgs. Photo by Lou Martin

The Virgin Valley High School Lady Bulldogs soccer team finished 0-2-1 in their ‘Mesquite Cup’ soccer tournament over the weekend of Aug. 26-27. It was one of the toughest fields ever for the tourney. The Bulldogs began play Friday against 3A Sunset league opponent Pahrump Valley falling by a score of 3-0. The final score was not indicative of the closeness of the match as the Trojans put up two scores in the closing minutes.

“We faced a good offensive team in Pahrump,” said Bulldog coach Bob Snell. “It was our first game and the girls tried to do too much. We struggled in the first half and were outshot by a better team 19-7. Our new goalkeeper Kristina Anguiano kept us in the game with six saves.”

Bulldogs dropped the second match of the night 1-0 to Cheyenne High School. The Sunset League Desert Shields scored early on a corner kick. “We were outshot 9-3 in the first half but came back to a decent 13-9 margin,” said Coach Snell. “We had lots of opportunities to score but fell short. Kristina Anguiano had another good game with seven saves.”

The Lady Dogs fell behind early in Saturday’s matchup against Clark High School before rallying to tie the match 3-3 and winning a kickoff 6-5. The Chargers struck two goals before freshman Ally Wright found the net on an assist from Abbie Barnum. Clark responded with a goal a minute later. Bulldog star striker got her first goal of the year with an assist from fellow offensive player Karla Correa. The Dawgs tied the match 3-3 with a rare corner kick from Kallie Graves with eight minutes remaining.

The Lady Dogs won their first kickoff in the history of the tournament 6-5. “I like the way we came back,” said Coach Snell. “The girls found a way to win. It increased their spirit immensely and when we get healthy we will be a much better team.”

The Bulldogs travel to Western High School on Sep.1 before hosting Mojave High School on Sep.2 at 5:30 p.m. at the Mesquite Sports and Events Center.