Liga MX Femenil Week 13 Recap

While there were a couple of blowouts this week, I thought most of the games were competitive and fun. It’s been a fun journey watching teams develop identities over the past few seasons and grow into their own selves. The Liguilla race has also been fun to watch, and with four games left we have just two teams qualified (Rayadas and Chivas) and just two teams mathematically eliminated (Mazatlán and Necaxa). Teams six through nine will be the most competitive, with Tijuana (22), Juárez (21), Atlas (20), and Toluca (18) all neck-and-neck for the final three spots.

Graphic courtesy of Liga BBVA Femenil (@LigaBBVAFemenil)

Game of the Week

Club Tijuana 1, Atlas 1

With both teams needing points to solidify their grip on a spot in the Liguilla, you just knew this one was going to be a tough affair. It did not disappoint. The game was physical, with lots of contact. Renae Cuéllar had the first good shot of the game in the 14th minute, but Ana Gaby Paz made a great leaping save. Then at the other end Maritza Maldonado had a shot at almost an entirely open net but scuffed it, and it was easily cleared off of the line. Tijuana looked to exploit Atlas’ midfield pressing higher up the pitch with long passes into the gaps, but despite splitting the defense multiple times Xolos Femenil couldn’t quite get anything to go. A turnover deep in the 33rd minute lead to a Fabiola Ibarra shot but Siena Ruelas did well to bail her team out. Finally in the 44th minute a nice cross from Mailin Orozco was parried by a diving Paz, but it fell straight to Paola Villamizar and she knocked it in for her third goal of the season. Tijuana kept going after Atlas but couldn’t quite get anything to go, with Paz making a couple of good stops on shots by Cuéllar. Atlas hung tough though, and got a couple of chances including one in the 61st minute by Zellyka Arce that Ruelas had to tip up and over the crossbar. It eventually paid off in the fourth minute of stoppage when Kimberly Hernández took down Daniela Cruz and referee Rosario Cárdenas whistled a penalty. Pushing and shoving broke out between the teams, and Fer Limón and Joselyn De La Rosa were both sent off with Ana Gaby Paz shown a yellow card. Paola García converted the penalty and Atlas was able to get an important point on the road.

Other scores:

Gallos Blancos de Querétaro 1, Club Atlético de San Luis 0

I’m enjoying Querétaro’s 5-3-2 / 3-5-2 and focus on defense, and they executed their game plan to perfection: score early and then smother the opponent. Leidy Ramos headed in a corner kick in the third minute, and Gallos put the clamps on San Luis for the remaining 87 minutes to get the win. San Luis hit the crossbar several times, once on a corner kick in the 33rd minute and twice more in the 39th minute, with Marta Alemany doing her best to keep the ball from going in off of the rebounds. Alemany also did well in the 53rd minute to stop a point-blank shot from Mayra Estrada. Alemany’s fifth shutout of the season keeps Querétaro’s slim playoff hopes alive, six points back of eighth place.

UNAM Pumas 1, Club América 1

Anything can (and usually does) happen in the Clásico Capitalino, and this one was no exception. Anahí Gómez scored for Pumas in the first minute of play when Itzel González misjudged a free kick from behind the halfway line that hit off of the bar, with Gómez heading it in with no one around her. América tried to bounce back, but Pumas played well and kept them from getting many good chances. América looked to have scored on one of those few good chances in the 39th minute, but Katty Martínez’ goal was inexplicably called offside despite replays showing her onside by a good margin. In the dying moments of the game however América was able to pull it out when a shot by Jocelyn Orejel was headed on frame by Alison González. It hit off of the frame, hit Melany Villeda in the head, and went into the back of the net. América remains in third place, while with just 13 points Pumas sees their Liguilla chances all but extinguished.

Puebla F.C. 2, Cruz Azul 0

Puebla was already all but out of it at the beginning of the match, but they were able to throw a huge wrench into Cruz Azul’s Liguilla ambitions by beating La Maquina. Cruz Azul had several good chances including a Dani “Blue” Flores header in the 31st minute that Karla Morales made a nice save on. A poor giveaway in the 56th minute though allowed Puebla to take the lead. Nelly Alemán drew Itzayana González off of her line and though the goalkeeper made a nice play to try and stop her, Alemán was able to slot the ball over to Fátima Rosales for the tap-in. Puebla added an insurance goal in the 86th minute when Samantha Martínez and Rebeca Villuendas played a nice give-and-go with Martínez hitting a rocket into the back of the net. With just 12 points, Cruz Azul are all but formally eliminated from the Liguilla at this point but have an interesting project going on and I hope the key players are re-signed next season and given some reinforcements to help out.

Toluca 2, Rayadas de Monterrey 0

The shock result of the week as Toluca continues their ascent toward the Liguilla, handing Monterrey their first loss of the season. Toluca took the game to Monterrey, with Vanessa Penuna getting the games first shot on goal in the first minute forcing Alex Godínez to make a save. Then at the other end it was Carlee Giammona getting past the defense and forcing Kayla Thompson to come up big. Mariel Román put the home side up in the 32nd minute when she got a cross just outside of the box and banked one in off of the post for her second goal of the season. Penuna almost doubled the lead a minute later, but her swerving shot was just wide. Chinwendu Ihezuo hade a good chance just before the half but Thompson did well to parry it into the seats. Rayadas almost pulled one back in the 56th when Aylin “La Joya” Aviléz hit a rocket of a shot off of the crossbar. Thompson made another great save in the 67th on a Desirée Monsiváis header that hit off of the post. Three minutes later Toluca got their second of the match on a great shot from Liliana Rodríguez from the top of the box. Godínez made a good stop on Brenda Woch in the 75th minute to keep her team in it, but Rayadas couldn’t find a goal. They’re now winless in four and slipped behind Chivas for the superlíder spot in the league.

Guadalajara 3, León 0

León hung tough for a while, but Chivas proved to be too much and got the 3-0 win. Perhaps the biggest news of the evening however came when Licha Cervantes was subbed on in the 45th minute, returning to the pitch for the first time since suffering an injury in Week 3. Licha served as a perfect decoy on Chivas’ first goal, drawing the attention of the defenders and allowing Gabi Valenzuela to get a free run at a cross from Joseline Montoya out on the right flank. This opened the floodgates, as six minutes later Valenzuela set up a great goal by Caro Jaramillo, putting a perfectly weighted pas back into the path of Jaramillo, who hit it at full speed off of the underside of the crossbar. But Cervantes made her presence known in the 79th minute, making a fantastic move to make the defender run past her and hitting a great shot past Ángeles Martínez for her seventh goal in just four games. While Chivas take the superlíder spot from Rayadas, León’s 14 points keep them mathematically alive but realistically struggling.

Tigres UANL 5, Mazatlán FC 0

About what was expected from both teams. Jackie Ovalle got her fourth goal of the season in the fourth minute when a defensive error allowed her to knock the ball into the open net. Stephany Mayor made her return from injury, starting for the first time since Week 10 and getting her third goal of the season in the 25th minute on the receiving end of a great pass from Ovalle and doing the baby celebration. Mia Fishel got in on the act, getting a gift from the Mazatlán defense that couldn’t clear it quick enough and hitting a fantastic off-balance shot in the 37th that made it past Jennifer Amaro. Amaro made several good saves on the evening, but Tigres were given too many chances. Referee Itzel Hernández missed a clear hand ball by Rubí Ruvalcaba in first half stoppage time, but it wouldn’t matter much in the end result. Fishel got her second of the night and tenth of the season in the 54th minute on a header on a great cross in from Jana Gutiérrez. 16 year old Deiry Ramírez got her first goal in her first Liga MX Femenil start on a fantastic chilena in the 74th minute. Ramírez almost got a second in the 86th, making a defender miss, moving forward calmly, and hitting one just wide of the net. Tigres keep pace with the lead pack while Mazatlán are just seeing the season out at this point.

Pachuca 5, Necaxa 1

Another one where we expected a thrashing and witnessed one as Pachuca downs Necaxa 5-1. Charlyn Corral got her first goal of the evening in the first minute of play, capitalizing on Necaxa’s inability to clear the ball out of the box. Saira López actually drew Necaxa level in the 12th minute on a nice flick-on of a cross into the box. But it was Pachuca’s night, and Jenni Hermoso got her first of the evening in the 36th on a shot from close range off of a corner kick. Two minutes later it was Corral’s turn again, as she hit a fantastic shot off of a throw-in. Corral completed the hat trick at the start of the second half with another golazo, this time from the top of the box for her 16th goal of the season. She almost had another in the 56th minute, but her shot went inches wide of the post. Jenni Hermoso rounded out things with her 15th goal of the season, knocking in the rebound of a shot that Valeria Martínez initially saved in the 85th minute. Pachuca remains ahead of Tigres but behind América on goal differential, as all three teams have 28 points with just four games left.

Santos Laguna 3, FC Juárez 2

A great game that really could have seen either team walk away with all three points as Santos downs regional rivals Juárez 3-2. Juárez came out strong and got several good chances but couldn’t quite capitalize on them thanks in part to some good saves by Paola Calderón. The tide turned in the 26th minute however when goalkeeper Stefi Jiménez made a nice play to punch out a cross into the box. The ball made it as far as Sofía Varela, who hit a shot that Jiménez knocked down, but it fell to the foot of Cinthya Peraza. Peraza moved the ball just outside of Jiménez’ reach and fired a shot into the back of the net to give the hosts the lead. Then almost immediately after, Jiménez had a clearance that was deflected by Alexia Villanueva to Sofía Varela. Varela lined it up and knocked in her sixth goal of the season to give Santos the 2-0 lead. But there was plenty of time left and Las Bravalácticas had some tricks up their sleeves. In the 37th a long ball into the box floated to where Calderón had to tip the ball up and into the bar. Myra Delgadillo was right there, but couldn’t connect with the ball and it was cleared out by the Santos defense. Juárez’ fortunes turned however in the 52nd minute when Sumiko Gutiérrez hit a cross from the left flank into the box for Blanca Solís. Solís initial header was stopped by a Santos defender, but she stayed with it, corralled the rebound, and knocked it into the net to cut the deficit in half. Solís got the equalizer seven minutes later when Jasmine Cazarez got onto a great cross and headed it back against the grain toward the far post. Solís got to the ball and slid into it, poking it into the net for her fifth goal of the season. Juárez clearly had the momentum, but couldn’t quite get anything to go. Then in the 65th Santos his Juárez on the counter, and Cinthya Peraza played a pass out to Alexia Villanueva, who chipped it into the box. Alondra Gurrola deflected the ball but Peraza picked it up, moved laterally across the box, and fired a shot past Jiménez for her second goal of the season. Juárez kept pressing for the tying goal, but Calderón and the defense stood strong and Santos picked up their third win of the season. Juárez is now winless in their last three, and they are just one over eighth place Tijuana and three points over ninth place Toluca, who they play this week, with four games to go in the Liguilla race.

Sub 18 results

Week 14

Rayadas de Monterrey 0, Tigres UANL 1

Necaxa 1, Pachuca 1

Atlas 2, León 2

UNAM Pumas 1, América 2

Mazatlán FC 0, Santos Laguna 2

Gallos Blancos de Querétaro 0, Toluca 0

Club Atlético de San Luis 1, Guadalajara 3

Cruz Azul 2, FC Juárez 0

Bye: Puebla F.C., Club Tijuana

Week 15

Tigres UANL 1, Mazatlán 0

Toluca 5, FC Juárez 0

América 0, Gallos Blancos de Querétaro 0

Necaxa 1, UNAM Pumas 0

Puebla F.C. 1, Cruz Azul 0

Santos Laguna 2, Guadalajara 2

León 1, Rayadas de Monterrey 0

Club Tijuana 0, Club Atlético de San Luis 1

Bye: Atlas (6-5-2), Pachuca (5-6-2)

Week 16 (all records are in W-D-L format, all times as listed):

Saturday, April 22

Guadalajara (9-4-1) vs. Tigres UANL (9-1-3) - 9:00 AM

Atlas (6-5-2) vs. Club Tijuana (1-3-9) - 9:00 AM

Pachuca (5-6-2) vs. Toluca (5-5-3) - 11:00 AM

Gallos Blancos de Querétaro (4-4-6) vs. Puebla F.C. (5-3-5) - 3:45 PM

Sunday, April 23

Club Atlético de San Luis (2-5-6) vs. Santos Laguna (3-7-3) - 10:00 AM

FC Juárez (2-1-11) vs. América (8-3-2) - 10:00 AM

Rayadas de Monterrey (3-6-4) vs. Mazatlán FC (2-5-5) - 10:00 AM

Cruz Azul (5-4-4) vs. Necaxa (4-4-5) - 11:00 AM

Bye: UNAM Pumas (6-2-6), León (4-4-6)

Liga MX Femenil Table

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