Liga MX Femenil 2023 Apertura, Week 1 Recap

The 13th season of Liga MX Femenil is upon us, and with 17 games in the regular season every match and every point are critical. Teams spent the past month or more looking for ways to improve on and off the field so that when this moment came, the off-season would not have been in vain.

The dawn of the new season is always the best. Every team starts from scratch as equals, giving their fans the very plausible hope that this season will be theirs. Of course after the first week that’s all out the window, but for that brief window in time everything is pristine and perfect, every team equally as close to having their ultimate dreams realized.

Thank you for reading Golazo del Gringo! If you enjoyed reading this post, please share it with anyone who enjoys women’s soccer.

Even those teams who lost this past week can still look at the remaining 16 games with utmost hope. They’re just three points out of first place after all, and next week will be different. They learned what didn’t work and will adjust, looking to take those learnings into the subsequent week because while losing stings no team has ever run a perfect season after all. Just keep pushing and grinding. You’ll get there.

Game of the Week

Toluca 1, Rayadas de Monterrey 1

New-look Toluca came out and performed really well, holding Monterrey to a 1-1 draw in front of 2,018 fans. The first half was very closely contested, with both teams getting chances on goal which required good saves by goalkeepers Miriam Aguirre and Alex Godínez. Just after the start of the second half the game changed when Mariel Román knocked down Chinwendu Ihezuo in the box and Itzel Hernández awarded a penalty. Rebeca Bernal buried it to give Rayadas the lead, and it looked like they were going to get the three points on the road before a Natalia Gómez Junco wonderstrike at the death salvaged a result for the hosts.

Other scores:

León 2, Necaxa 0

León cruised over Necaxa 2-0. Yashira Barrientos put the hosts up in the 31st minute when she was left undefended in the box, knocking in a Marlyn Campa cross past Brissa Rangel. Necaxa had a couple of good opportunities to equalize, but Renatta Cota stood strong, turning away all of the shots she faced for her first senior team shutout. Dani Calderón put the game away in the 73rd when Lizbeth Ángeles hit a great through ball that Calderón put past Rangel.

Santos Laguna 1, Pachuca 3

Santos looked good early but waned as the match went on and Pachuca got a solid 3-1 win. Lia Romero put the hosts up in the fifth minute, getting onto the end of a nice through ball and shooting one past Esthefanny Barreras. But the lead wouldn’t last forever. Charlyn Corral got her first of the season in the 32nd minute, hitting a left-footed shot from distance past a diving Hannia De Avila. The game remained fairly close, and both teams had chances to get the go-ahead goal until Viri Salazar took advantage of a great pass through the lines from deep and hit a laser past De Avila. Then in stoppage time a (dubious?) foul in the box allowed Corral to convert a penalty to finish the match.

UNAM Pumas 2, América 5

A bit of a wild one as América got the better of the Clásico Capitalino, downing Pumas 5-2 at Estadio Olímpico Universitario. Andrea Pereira put América up in the 18th minute, converting a penalty after a bad giveaway lead to a handball in the box on a shot from Jocelyn Orejel. The lead only lasted five minutes though, as Dirce Delgado put her head onto a nice corner kick into the box to draw the sides level. Just when it looked like the sides were going to go into the half knotted at 1-1, Katty Martínez got her first goal of the 2023 Apertura, putting a header up and over Melany Villeda and into the back of the net in stoppage time. Cas Cuevas got her first of the season in the 65th minute when she was left poorly marked in the box on a cross in from Sarah Luebbert on the right flank. While it looked like it hit off of her ribs, a VAR review could have conclusively determined if it hit off of her arm too or just her body. In the end it wouldn’t matter though. Despite a beautiful goal from Aerial Chavarin in the 69th minute, Cuevas scored her second in the 75th on another great pass from Luebbert and Noemi Granados got her first goal for América since joining from Toluca at the end of the 2022 Apertura in the 87th to give América a convincing win over their city rivals.

Mazatlán 2, Cruz Azul 3

This one was in consideration for Game of the Week because of how competitive it was. Mazatlán has taken a huge step forward from last season and should not be taken lightly by anyone. 15 year old Cristina Montaño scored on her first team debut in the 17th minute, getting a pass from deep and taking a deft touch to flick it over Itzayana González for a highlight-reel golazo. Three minutes later Magali Cuadrado got her first of the season on a shot from outside of the box. Cruz Azul however wasn’t done - far from it. Edith Carmona pulled one back for La Máquina in the 31st on a shot from distance into the top corner. Meghan Cavanaugh had a shot saved and then a shot hit off of the post before finally getting her first goal in Liga MX Femenil in stoppage time before the second half, heading one in past Claudia Lozoya. Cavanaugh played a key role in the game winning goal in the 62nd, heading a free kick off of the post that was tapped in by María Peraza to give the visitors all three points on the evening.

Club Tijuana 1, Guadalajara 1

This one could have easily been Game of the Week as well, but (perhaps) the excitement of Toluca-Rayadas being first pushed that one over the line. This was a good match between two very good teams. I like how Tijuana has kind of re-invented themselves as a defensive-minded team with Renae Cuéllar’s status undetermined and Angelina Hix also out of the lineup. They played Chivas very well, really limiting their chances while not over-committing when they had the ball in the Chivas zone. Chivas’ lone goal came on a set piece, with Caro Jaromillo finding a poorly-marked Gabi Valenzuela in the box in the 41st minute. Tijuana opened up after this a bit, and it’s only fitting that a defender equalized for Las Xolas, with Yadira Toraya putting her head onto a corner kick in the 82nd minute to salvage the draw.

Tigres UANL 4, Puebla F.C. 0

Tigres picking up right where they left off, thrashing Puebla 4-0 despite the glaring absence of Mia Fishel, who if rumors are to be believed could be making a big move. Maricarmen Reyes had a brace, nailing a pass from Joseline Montoya in the 15th minute and cleaning up the rebound from a Jackie Ovalle shot in the 28th minute. Greta Espinoza headed in a cross in the 33rd minute, and Ovalle hit a thundering free kick in the 40th minute to put this one away before halftime. Natalia Villarreal picked up a second yellow card in the 63rd minute and was sent off, but even with the advantage Puebla couldn’t get much of anything going and Tigres picked up an easy win at home.

FC Juárez 1, Atlético San Luis 1

Juárez looked strongest in the opening part of the match, keeping San Luis down in their own end for a decent amount of the first half. Nicole Buenfil made several key saves to keep San Luis in the match, There was a bit of a scary scene in the 50th minute when Yenifer García ran into Buenfils, hitting the goalkeeper in the legs with her cleat. García was miraculously (for her) only shown a yellow card, however she did come off for Julitha Singano. Four minutes later Laura Parra took advantage of a turnover, made a great run, took a shot that was blocked, and followed it up, getting another shot on goal that beat Renata Masciarelli to give the visitors the lead. Juárez however fought back, aided with the sending off of Zellyka Arce in the 68th minute. It paid off in the 80th minute when Jasmine Casarez hit a shot from the top of the box in off the underside of the crossbar to salvage a point for Las Bravalácticas.

Atlas vs. Querétaro - postponed until July 26

Liga MX Femenil Table