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November 6, 2009 10:45 AM

Elizabeth Lambert: College Soccer Player Turns NCAA Playoff Game Into Hand-to-Hand "Combat"

Posted by Barry Leibowitz
(GoLobos.com)
Photo: Elizabeth Lambert.

NEW YORK (CBS) It's not extreme fighting... It's not boxing... It's not even hockey. But a women's college soccer game offered its own brand of "combat" of a not-very-sporting kind.

VIDEO: Elizabeth Lambert Makes a Mark (RadarOnline.com)

In an NCAA west conference semi-final game, Elizabeth Lambert of the University of New Mexico had some physical run-ins with opposing players from Brigham Young University, leading some to question if Lambert's actions crossed the line.

The video of Lambert's actions was shown by ESPN, and in perhaps the most arresting incident she blatantly pulled the hair of a BYU player, snapping her head back in the process.

Just a game?

BYU did win 1-0 to advance to the finals. The season is over for Lambert's New Mexico squad, but probably not the post-game trash talking.

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK: Is Elizabeth Lambert guilty of more than just bad sportsmanship?

VIDEO: Elizabeth Lambert Makes a Mark (RadarOnline.com)

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Add a Comment See all 78 Comments
by heavygee November 18, 2009 10:12 PM EST
something needs to be done about Elizabeth Lambert she is out of control.
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by Brody1989 November 18, 2009 7:17 PM EST
Elizabeth Lambert should have her nipples cut off for such a disgusting act!
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by Zolt43 November 18, 2009 7:12 PM EST
File assault charges against Elizabeth Lambert! Suspension is nothing. She should be in jail.

And what twisted logic are you using, wilkat425? Do you have eyes? A brain? What actions have warranted such retaliation by Elizabeth? Nothing. The girls psychotic. She should be in jail. I'm glad they've suspended her. She's a clear nutcase.
Reply to this comment
by mac3444 November 19, 2009 3:38 PM EST
Whoever u are? Grow up u freak!!! Most of those women are married and im married to one of them. before u post anything u better make sure u have your facts right!!!!
by wilkat425 November 16, 2009 3:13 PM EST
Wow-have any of you really looked at the video of not only the 2nd half but first half of that game! Can you say sexual harrassment!Now that is a crime. Absolutely disgusting!!! During the first half the byu sexually repressed girls were grabbing Elizabeth lamberts crotch and other body parts every chance they got - whenever they thought the cameras weren't looking. I imagine by the 2nd half she had had enough.Personally I would be in prison for putting one of those PERVERTS 6 foot under! If you look carefully at the video(thats been played over & over in the media)right as she grabs the ponytail of one of the sexual predators, you will notice said predator starting to push Elizabeths shorts up to cop another feel in full view of the camera! Well I would say Elizabeth Lambert was difinitly ready for her - GOOD FOR HER! What the hell do they teach those girls at byu!Think people - why would Elizabeth lambert all of sudden go ballistic in the 2nd half? I also have a strong feeling the girls of byu planned thier sexual attack before the game.While I can only imagine the hell Lambert is going through in her life right now, I believe what you do in this life will eventually come back at you seven-fold,those girls will someday pay for thier indescretions - its called karma.As for why Lambert didn't say anything - besides the disgust and humiliation of being sexually accosted by a bunch of mormon women - take a look at whats being said and written in the media and blogs as you read this.How much worse would it be for her if the truth came out! Shame on byu and shame on the unm coach for not sticking up for one of her girls.
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by Brody1989 November 18, 2009 7:20 PM EST
It doesn't excuse what the b*tch inflicted on the unsuspecting, does it? I say off with Lambert's nipples!
by heavygee November 18, 2009 10:25 PM EST
i think steve wonder saw what Elizabeth Lambert did,wow,she could have broke that girls neck. wilkat425
by jewels5839 November 16, 2009 2:23 PM EST
That is a shame that the officials allowed her to get away with all of that. So she got elbowed but did that constitute an all out assult on that girl. No. She should have gotten thrown out of the game and fined. Since the officials put up with that - in my book - she should have been delt the same back to her.

If she would have been playing with me or any of the girls I knew growning up, she would have gotten her lilly white A** BEAT all over that soccer field. From one end to the other. Then the officials would have gotten involved. She got away with it this time and she will continue to do it until one of these other players send her crying to her soccer mommie on the side-lines and I can't wait for that to be covered by the news.

Its called Karma - and it will be served. Again, if it were me she hit like that, I would have taken both of us out of the game and the officials would have made no mistake by what they saw. It would have been very clear to everyone that she got STOMPED!

It is a shame that she stoops that low when clearly she could be a great soccer player and there may be some young ladies that looked up to her at one time. I know that I would not have let her get away with that if she did that to me. It would have turned into a professional light-weight boxing match, no - just two hits, me hitting her and her embedded into the ground! :)
Reply to this comment
by Elcontador November 13, 2009 2:29 AM EST
This is some of the absolute worst officiating I've ever seen at any level of the game, and I've watched or played for over thirty years.

One of the main purposes of officiating in fútbol is to protect the players and be in control of the game when absolutely necessary. We saw none of this in the ESPN video.

Take the legs out of an opposing player and miss the ball, you get a yellow card. Talk **** to an official, you get a yellow card. Intentionally do something to injure an opposing player, you get an immediate red. It's that simple.

If I was an official at that match, upon her first blatant attack on an opposing player, out she'd go. If she was provoked, the offending party should be carded (depending on the severity, a yellow or a straight red). Anyone who wouldn't do this shouldn't be an official.
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by anniesezz November 12, 2009 11:03 PM EST
Loser... sore loser that is! What a disgrace to the sport, but I guess you gotta play dirty when you suck... what comes around goes around!!!!
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by Reigekiz November 11, 2009 11:19 AM EST
She is Just fighting back...
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by chapper3103 November 11, 2009 7:36 AM EST
Heck Lambert is in the wrong sport! She needs to be in MMA....put her against Brock Lester, my money is on Lambert!
Reply to this comment
by chapper3103 November 11, 2009 7:36 AM EST
Heck Lambert is in the wrong sport! She needs to be in MMA....put her against Brock Lester, my money is on Lambert!
Reply to this comment
by Soccer_Girl5 November 10, 2009 7:47 PM EST
I think that the jabs from the other team was uncalled for, but acting the way that Eizabeth did to the other people, that was just incredibly wrong. That was just astonding. She did NOT have to grab that girl's hair and yank it, she did NOT have to kick the ball in that girls face, she did NOT have to punch that girl in the face and then in the back of the head, and she did NOT have to punch that girl in the back, for a little elbow shove. And to all you people who think soccer isn't a hard sport, try it. It really is. All the protection that you have are shin guards. And that's IT! I don't think that people should say that what she did was so bad that she should go to jail, I just think that she should get kicked off the team for the season and go get counseling. She obviously has angry problems. I hate how people think that soccer is a whimp sport. It's the complete opposite. People say that because they can't do what soccer players do, because they don't have the strength or stamina. I feel bad for those people. Soccer players, all you who are reading this, don't believe what people call you. Field Fairy's, etc. Stick up for yourselves. Just don't do it the way Eliabeth did. That was a horrible thing for her to do.
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by thisdress November 10, 2009 11:30 AM EST
I find it hard to believe that the law does not protect the BYU young women from this kind of aggressions. How is it possible that Lambert can get away with this degree of premeditated assaults with the obvious intention of inflicting grievous bodily harms?

We are not asking to have her hair yanked or neck snapped or face punched out. She publicly displayed actions that are definitely criminal. Either society condones it or it doesn't. By not persecuting her, are we saying that we can now all throw MMA-style assaults at each other with no consequence as long as it is committed on the field?

Sure, she deserves a second chance. Even murderers and rapists get that. But she doesn't deserve to get off with just a slap on the wrist. She can have her second chance after jail time.
Reply to this comment
by webserf-2009 November 10, 2009 10:41 AM EST
In the mid 1950's I used to go watch my dad (91 yrs today) play semi-pro soccer..the smaller leather soccer ball was hard and so was the game..I remember when any of the other team players played my dad dirty, he played everyone on that team dirty..one time he was chasing a player who had just elbowed him and stole the ball away from him..dad caught up to him full stride and kicked him under his shoe sending the player into a tumble..I saw a lot of battles bewteen my dads team and opposing players that when I joined the military in the 1960's and played in a soccer team, I thought it was pretty normal to engage into these confrontations..as long as you didn't kick anyone to really harm them..like to the head or chest area if they were down,,but I found soccer had changed into a pretty passive sport..dad played against players from all over the world..all were good and all were very very tough..it is a tough sport..after every match my dad played in,,all players shook hands and gave compliments..some of these players still called my dad at home to talk about how rough he played them..Lambert reminds me of the soccer days of old,,except for the hair pulling,,she is a fighter and cmpetitor..I can see where the other team started the dirty playing against and she wasn't going to take any of their crap..I showed the You Tube vedio to my dad and his eyes sparkeled and he grinned like had had not in a long time..all he sad was.."Now there is a real soccer player"
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by golaud November 10, 2009 7:33 AM EST
Oh please. Watch closely and you will see that Lambert was deliberately being provoked. Look at the left hand of the player in front of Lambert in the famous ponytail-pull incident, for example. The BYU players were being unsportsmanlike behind their backs where the refs couldn?t see it. They were mean and sneaky, Lambert retaliated openly and foolishly. That?s the only difference. The BYU players got better than they deserved; they should all be disciplined. What is this item doing on Crimesider?
Reply to this comment
by loukyreader November 9, 2009 9:38 PM EST
I was a student athlete and this girl is a disgrace. Of COURSE she is sorry and apologetic now that she has been exposed. It always amazes me when someone acts a certain way and then states that it is not who they are, etc. Apparently it is... she didn't "slip" up and act violently once, but MANY times during this game. I wonder how many other games she did similar things and didn't get caught. I hope they keep her off the team. Women's sports do not need that type of behavior. Competiveness is one thing. Pure and simple violence is another.
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by FrankRiley1 November 9, 2009 9:01 PM EST
I think it is called assault and that would make it a crime. The girl should be in jail! Now on the other hand as a guy I loved watching this story. There is just something completely hot about girls in a rough sport.
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by myeyedea November 9, 2009 7:38 PM EST
Poor sportsmanship is poor sportsmanship - it doesn't matter who started it, retaliated, encouraged it, or ignored it - - everyone involved is a poor sport. Soccer has the distinct characteristic of rewarding acting behavior (did the pony tail girl really need to fall down like she got hit by a brick and act like she got a concussion?) as well as encouraging rougher than necessary play (it all starts when someone is allowed to hang onto another player's shirt to keep them from taking the ball), and what's going to come from both of those things is exactly this kind of disgusting demonstration of play. It's going to sound like I'm coming down especially hard on the ref's, but I don't think anyone who encourages or allows a player of any age to purposefully hurt another player should be allowed anywhere near a team sport. Go take up boxing if that's the sort of aggression that appeals to you.

I played in a basketball game once where the ref's favored the other team, and by the time the game was over I went home with a concussion and another of my teammates had a 6 inch scrape up her shin almost to the bone and a contussion on her elbow because she was pushed so hard she slid under a bleacher. No, we wouldn't have won the game even if the ref's were clean, but because they didn't bother trying to reign in the overly aggressive play of our opponents, not only did we lose, but we went home hurt. Our coach ended the game himself, calling us all off the floor and said he'd pay whatever fine he got slapped with for forfeitting, but he wasn't going to have us out there one more second to be beaten on.

I fully understand that ref's get a hard time from all corners of the court/field - but that comes with the territory. Referies are needed to make decisions on ambiguous play and to keep play moving within the rules. If ref's aren't going to do that for whatever reason, then new ones need to be found who will. Sports can be dangerous enough on their own without those entrusted with the responsibility of supervision not doing their job. Keep the players in check, keep the coaches in check, make use of security to have threatening spectators removed, and call the games as they need to be called. Parents and coaches, reign in your kids and yourselves - I don't care if you are being paid to be out there, neither you nor your child has a right to threaten another player's/spectator's/participant's life. It's competition, not the Roman Collesium.
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by clydeobrown November 9, 2009 6:53 PM EST
I was a high school soccer official for about 15 years and observed a lot of undesireable plays by the players and being an honest ref i would make the proper calls. You would not believe the amount of abuse the refs would get from both the coaches and the fans. Fortunately I always stood up for my rights as the ref. Unfortunately I had to take abuse from the AD's, the coaches, and the soccer officials until wee hours after making the calls and having to justify my actions. When these responsible officials heard the story behind the play they agreed with my actions. However, those of us officials who did make these kinds of calls were blacklisted by the coaches as to never officiating their games again----Do we now know why more compittent officials are no longer reffing games.

Yes the young lady in question needed to be carded, however so should the coaches and all of the other players who initiated the retaliation should also be admonished for their actions.

I say lets clean up the sport, the coaches and the officials and the students will play accordingly. Lamperts punishment was too servere.
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by Ms_enza November 9, 2009 4:03 PM EST
In the order appearing in the video... 1st chick threw an elbow into Lambert's gut, so a forearm clip to the back is in order.

But the ponytail toss... 10 POINTS! Almost as good as the Italian team player's headbutt a couple of years back in the world cup...
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by skepticalJM November 9, 2009 3:53 PM EST
By the way, should we not add as an aside, that a prominent 48 HOUR producer has been brought up on charges of extortion and blackmail!!!
So much for the credibility of the accusers!
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