TYLER, Texas, September 22, 2017 – Angie Ponce delivered three goals for her first career hat trick on Friday, leading the No. 9-ranked Monroe College women's soccer team to a 4-2 victory over Northeast Texas Community College at Tyler Junior College's Pat Hartley Field. The Mustangs improve to 3-2 on the season, while the Eagles drop to 5-3.
 
Ponce netted her first of the day in the 24th off a feed inside the box from Juliana Pires, giving the Mustangs an early 1-0 advantage. Just four minutes later, Pires once again set up Ponce inside the box for her second score of the afternoon to double the Mustang lead. After drawing a penalty-kick opportunity at the 35:33 mark, Alba Gonzalez was successful on her try, scoring her first goal and pushing Monroe's lead to 3-0, which the Mustangs took into halftime.
 
The Eagles began to fight back early in the second frame, scoring in the 51st minute on Esther Okoronkwo's goal. Northeast Texas cut the deficit to one when Azalea Ayala scored at the 54:06 mark. In the 74th minute, Ponce managed to put her third into the back of the net off a filter ball inside the box by Yolanda Albalat to give the Mustangs some extra insurance, as they held on for the 4-2 win.
 
Goalkeeper Taylor Lewis got the win in net for the Mustangs to improve to 1-1 on the year. Priscilla Trevino took the loss for the Eagles after allowing four goals.
 
Ponce led the field with three goals, as well as six shot attempts and four shots on net in a huge day for the freshman. Gonzalez netted her first of the year and also tried three shots. Pires provided a pair of assists, while Albalat dished out one of her own on the final goal of the day.
 
Monroe attempted 16 total shots on the afternoon, while the Eagles managed just four. The Mustangs also put nine shots on goal compared to just two for Northeast Texas. The Mustangs edged out the Eagles, 3-2, in corner kicks.
 
Leaving Texas with a win, the Mustangs now look forward to a highly-anticipated matchup on Friday, Sept. 29, against No. 15 ASA College at City Park. Friday's game will kick off under the lights of Skidelsky Field at 7 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's rugby, and the newly added club women's rugby team, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, will have six teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level beginning in the fall of 2017.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs), and follow the women's soccer team on Instagram (@monroe_womens_soccer).