Glendale Women’s soccer came out strong against Moorpark, scoring twice in the first 10 minutes, but couldn’t hold off Moorpark, losing 5-3 on Sept. 21.

Short two players and sustaining six injuries, Glendale couldn’t hold onto its initial lead as Moorpark scored two goals in five minutes to move ahead 2-1. After Glendale tied the game at 2-2, Moorpark scored two more goals to take a 4-2 lead at half time.

“You have two to tie, and three to win,” assistant coach Laura Matsumoto told the team at half time. “I’m willing to take it one goal at a time, but you have to get your heads in the game.”

In the second half, Glendale started off with great set-ups, but couldn’t seem to pull it together enough to score. Moopark came out strong, and scored two more goals before Glendale was able to score once more with 15 minutes left in the game.

The team has had a rocky start this season, with six starters injured and another out with a red card from a game against Ventura.

“We’re not using that as an excuse,” coach Jorge Mena said. “You got to do what you got to do.”

Co-captain, Raquel Castellanos, thinks the team still has a chance to finish off the season on a good note. Mena expects to be running at “110 percent” in two to three weeks, and until then the plan of attack is to focus more on the game, work better as a team, and create a higher level of intensity.

Glendale has eight returning players, with the others new to the team. This year the recruitment range was expanded allowing for more room to recruit. ”

I invested the last five years to come out with this team,” Mena said. “I feel that the team is competitive enough to win conference.”

Glendale fell to 1-2 in conference with last week’s loss, and knows that it’s time to step up, play hard, and do what it takes to win. Mena hopes the team is getting the injuries out of the way now, and will end up strong.