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LAREDO, Texas – Senior night stirred a cauldron of emotion on Saturday when Heartland Conference foes St. Edward's and Texas A&M International met at the TAMIU Soccer Complex. The Rattlers and Dustdevils produced a relatively calm and even first half, seeing only St. Mary's score.
But it was the four-goal second half that accelerated the match to break-neck speed. The Rattlers railed off three more goals before the Dustdevils answered with one of their own, courtesy of Kim Garcia and Sam Zerilli on the assist. That 87th minute connection served as Garcia's fourth goal of the campaign and Zerilli's – a senior – fourth helper.
The match featured a bruised TAMIU that saw almost every outfield player muscling through injury – ranging from tweaked knees to sprained ankles. The battered lineup registered only three shots, with two falling on frame.
St. Mary's Lauren Heller (17th minute), Cailyn Trapani (64th), Jessica Traves (67th) and Mikayla Engel (83rd) littered the score sheet for the visitors. Trapani, Ally Linquist and Taylor Settecerri served assists on the goals.
Zerilli, Alyssa Perez, Katelin Jennings and Lisette Gil were recognized for their careers as Dustdevils at the match. During a ceremony at halftime, TAMIU seniors were honored by coach Claudio Arias with framed photographs of the players in action. Non-senior Dustdevils praised the team and gave gifts that represented their play and character.
"These gifts mean something special to us as a team," junior defender Laura Twinem said during the ceremony. "Each one is related to a superhero, because all of you seniors are our heroes. (Sam), you are the Hulk, because no one wants to see you when you're angry. … (Katelin), you're Spider-Man because you always seem to get us out of sticky situations. … (Alyssa), you're obviously Superman because there's no way you're not made of steel, playing with all the injuries. … and (Lisette), you're Iron Man for being such a leader while being hurt, even more so with that cast on."
The Dustdevils (2-13, 2-6 Heartland Conference) will play one final home match, hosting McMurry on Monday at 2:30 p.m.
