HUNTSVILLE ? Debbie Campbell scored in the second minute of the game in the season opener for the Sam Houston State soccer team, but five second-half goals for Texas-El Paso was enough to hand the Bearkats a 6-1 loss Friday at Pritchett Field.

Campbell received a long pass on the right sideline and two touches later send in a shot from the corner that found its way into the back of the net.

“It was good for us to get that early goal,” said SHSU head coach Marcia Oliveira. “We were able to put some pressure on them and get them in some uncomfortable situations tonight.”

In the 18 th minute UTEP evened the score at one and that is the way things remained until half. Early in the second half, the Miners added a second goal and shortly after that, the Kats were down 3-1. In the closing minutes UTEP tacked on three more for the final score of 6-1.

For the Bearkats, Jenny Pence got the start in goal and was solid in her first outing. The freshman from Kingwood totaled 19 saves, including a few acrobatic stops to keep the Miners from adding anything extra on the board.

“For a first game, I thought we came out and played pretty well,” Oliveira said. “We played with a very good soccer team tonight. There were a lot of positives we are going to be able to take away from this game tonight.”

The Bearkats will be back in action on Sunday when they take on Louisiana-Lafayette at 1 p.m. at Pritchett Field.