SANGOLQUÍ, Ecuador (Interstat) — S. Paez Zea K. had one goal and one assist, and Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W defeated U. de Deportes W 4-2 on Sunday in a Copa Libertadores Women match. The home side opened the scoring in the eighth minute when Nicole Charcopa scored. U. de Deportes W answered in the 23rd minute through Pierina Nunez, who later added a second goal. The first half stayed open as both teams traded goals, and the visitors relied on Nunez to remain close before halftime.

Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W regained the lead in the 41st minute on Karol Murcia’s goal. Nunez equalized again in the 45th minute for her second goal of the match. U. de Deportes W’s D. Farias was sent off in the third minute of first-half stoppage time, leaving the visitors a player short for the entire second half. The red card shifted the match toward the home side. A yellow card had already gone to U. de Deportes W in the 10th minute, and Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W’s E. E. Burgos Cedeno was booked in the 38th minute.

Paez Zea scored in the 78th minute and also set up a goal for Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W, which finished with four goals. Charcopa and Murcia each scored once for the home team. Karen Litardo provided an assist before being replaced in the 72nd minute. Paez Zea had scored in her previous recent appearance, a 1-1 draw with Belgrano W. For U. de Deportes W, Nunez scored twice, and Ana Gutierrez and Luz Campoverde each had an assist. Nunez was replaced in the 85th minute after her two-goal effort.

Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W made substitutions at 46, 72, 84 and 84 minutes. U. de Deportes W used changes at 62, 75 and 85 minutes. Rodriguez L. entered at 46 minutes for the home side, and Oxandabarat S. came on at 62 minutes for the visitors. Litardo and Burgos Cedeno were replaced in the 72nd minute for Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W. Espejo M. entered at 75 minutes for U. de Deportes W. Tabi Roldan and Guerra M. entered at 84 minutes for the home side, and Nunez P. came off at 85 minutes for the visitors. The home side’s second-half control followed a first half in which the teams combined for four goals before the break. U. de Deportes W’s red card forced it to defend deeper after halftime, and Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W found enough room to secure the win.

The result moved Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W to 1-0-1 in the competition and 1-0-1 across all competitions. U. de Deportes W fell to 0-2 in the competition and 0-2 overall. Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W had previously drawn 1-1 with Belgrano W, while U. de Deportes W had lost 1-0 to Palmeiras W (Bra) W in its previous match. Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W next plays at Palmeiras W (Bra) W, and U. de Deportes W next plays at Belgrano W. The win gave Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W a second straight match without a loss in the competition after its opening draw.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W 2, U. de Deportes W 0. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W with a 68.1 percent probability to win. Independiente del Valle W (Ecu) W had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1. The total score of 6 went under the over/under line of 2.5.