Rebels stumble in tourney final

PROVO, Utah — The postseason dream of the UNLV women’s soccer team is now in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s hands after a 2-1 loss to Brigham Young in the Mountain West Conference Tournament championship game Saturday.

The home win by the Cougars (17-3-2) dashed the hopes of the Rebels (11-5-5) clinching a third straight tournament title and leaves UNLV awaiting word Monday on an NCAA at-large bid.

“The girls did well, they got after it and showed a lot of character today,” UNLV coach Kat Mertz said of her team’s effort against BYU.

Season-leading scorer Katie Carney gave UNLV renewed optimism when she nailed a penalty kick in the 73rd minute after being fouled in the box by BYU defender Jennifer Carter. The goal cut BYU’s lead in half a few minutes after the Cougars scored to go ahead 2-0.

“I wanted to draw the foul, and she (Carter) clearly fouled me,” Carney said. “I knew I wanted to put this away. I got it and I looked up and saw that the goalie wasn’t moving, and we practice PKs, so left corner.”

The character that Mertz mentioned showed after Carney’s score.

The Rebels pressed everyone up but just couldn’t shake BYU’s defenders, with UNLV’s forwards being outnumbered while trying to swing the ball around the field.

The Cougars struck first, in the 49th minute, but not entirely on their own efforts. Carolyn Swensen’s free kick from a sharp angle on the left side was sent to Katie Fellows for a header attempt.

Fellows connected, but the ball didn’t make it in as it bounced off the right post. It was Rebels defender Dani Morin’s bad luck to be in the wrong place as the ball ricocheted off the post to catch her off guard, and she was assessed the own goal.

BYU added its second goal in the 68th minute when Fellows scorched an unassisted goal past UNLV goalkeeper Alicia Lugo.

“They put away the chances that they needed to put away to clinch it,” Lugo said. “I’m just glad we at least got one in. It showed heart and desire for my team.”

For teams whose success depends on stingy defenses, which held true with a 0-0 score at halftime, both UNLV and BYU still had plenty of room to attack. The Cougars attempted seven shots in the first half, and the Rebels also had their share of good looks.

Not knowing their NCAA Tournament fate until late Monday afternoon is the tough part now for the Rebels. But Mertz said the team just has to wait and see.

“I don’t know,” Mertz said. “We’re right on the bubble, so I don’t know what the committee is going to be looking at.”

Mertz added: “I think we played enough of a challenging schedule. I think we’ve done well with some opponents. You never know if the ties are going to kill you.

“We’ve put ourselves in this position, and now it’s just a waiting game.”