WINONA LAKE, Ind. - Grace's women's soccer team controlled much of Saturday's match with Mt. Vernon Nazarene.
The Lancers owned a significant percentage of the possession and had twice as many shot attempts as the Cougars. But MVNU took advantage of a misplay by Grace, scoring in the 62nd minute for the final 1-0 scoreline.
The Lancers finished the match with an 11-5 shot advantage but were unable to convert their tries in the defeat.
Grace was in the driver's seat for most of the first half. The Lancers' possession was consistent from kickoff through halftime.
The Cougars were limited to three shots in the half; only one of those tries was on frame.
As the half continued, Grace's dangerous moments seemed to grow. The best chance of the half came from Sam Vondersaar, but her attempt in the box was saved.
Rylee Burns and Feline Abbo provided dangerous advances along either sideline.
The Lancers generated four corner kicks in the final five minutes, producing two late shot attempts. But shots from Lilli Oberhoff and Rosalie Gefrorer missed the mark.
The teams entered halftime in a scoreless draw. Grace had a 6-3 edge in shots.
The second half was much of the same. The Cougars increased their physicality to try to disrupt Grace's possession, but the young Lancer squad still controlled play.
Grace's possession produced five more shot attempts after halftime, including early attempts from Abby Hodkin and Amy Wearing.
With less than 30 minutes remaining, the Cougars scored against the run of play. MVNU stole an errant pass and quickly passed into the penalty box. The Cougars' Madison Turner took her shot on the first touch and buried the attempt inside the far post.
Grace tried a handful of shots down the stretch, but attempts from Wearing, Cassidy Felger and Hodkin did not result in an equalizer.
Gefrorer did her best to spark a goal; the shifty freshman spun free from two Cougars in the middle of the field and dribbled at MVNU's goal. After drawing the attention of more defenders, she slotted a pass into the box. But Grace was unable to create a shot attempt from the chance.
Burns also made MVNU's back line sweat with a series of runs along the right side of the field, but the Cougars' defense held firm.
Grace had to settle for the 1-0 defeat despite the commanding 11-5 edge in shots.
Tori Twombly filled in admirably as Grace's goalkeeper for the 90 minutes, surrendering just the one goal.
The Lancers will travel to Taylor on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tilt. On Sept. 30, Grace will return home for a 7 p.m. face-off with No. 11 Indiana Wesleyan.
