The Hawaii soccer team got caught ball-watching just a few moments into its first road game of the season.

Colorado’s Danica Evans launched a laser ball off a flip throw-in that carried into the 6-yard box, off the head of Taylor Kornieck and into the net. That third-minute score set the tone of a 3-1 Buffaloes victory over the Rainbow Wahine.

UH (5-1-1) was attempting to remain unbeaten through seven games for the first time in program history, but instead saw its five-game winning streak snapped in the high altitude of Boulder, Colo.

Coach Michele Nagamine called the flip throw-in “the best I’ve seen in a long time,” but thought her team might have psyched itself out in the first minutes against the Pac-12 hosts at Prentup Field, leading to the 6-foot-1 freshman Kornieck getting a clean look. Kornieck then scored on a penalty kick earned off another set piece late in the first half, putting UH down 2-0 at halftime.

“I think we took some very valuable lessons from today’s game,” Nagamine said during a postgame phone interview. “I said (to the team) let’s be clear, that’s a good team, but we let this one go. We didn’t do what we were supposed to do. We didn’t stick to the game plan. So we need to be better about that.”

It was UH’s first game at Colorado since bowing out to the host Buffs in the first round of the 2007 NCAA tournament. Nagamine didn’t think the high altitude (5,430 feet) was a losing factor Friday, though.

The Wahine built a little momentum early in the second half and sophomore Raisa Strom-Okimoto brought her team back within a goal by converting a 65th-minute penalty kick, earned by Dani Crawford. It was Strom-Okimoto’s team-best fourth goal of the season, three of which have come on PKs.

But CU (4-3) put it away with an 86th-minute score down the middle by the throw-in artist Evans. UH previously hadn’t given up more than one goal in a game this season.

“We lost it today in the midfield and had a really hard time connecting with the forward line,” Nagamine said. “We’ll go back to the drawing board and watch some film.”

Senior goalkeeper Monk Berger had a career-high 10 saves in the loss.

The Wahine continue their three-game trip through the state of Colorado by taking on Denver (3-4) on Sunday. UH earned a 1-0 overtime win over DU at home last year, but the Pioneers are looking dangerous after recently going to Arizona State and winning 3-1.

“We’re going to get better from this, because I don’t think this is the kind of team that will let this feeling stick around for much longer,” Nagamine said.