PLATTEVILLE, Wis. - The St. Scholastica women's soccer team put together a gritty defensive performance on Friday evening but came up just short in a 1-0 loss to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville at Ralph E. Davis Pioneer Stadium.
The Saints' back line and goalkeeper
Rylee Senich (Cloquet, MN/Cloquet HS) held frim for much of the contest, with Senich turning away nine shots on goal and keeping the Pioneers off the board until the closing minutes. The freshmen made four saves in the first half and five more in teh second to keep the match level.
Offensively, the Saints had their best looks early in the first half.
Kaitlyn Sautter (Princeton, MN./Princeton HS) and
Julia Lewis (Maple Grove, MN/Maple Grove HS) each recorded shots, and Scholastica earned a pair of corner kicks to apply early pressure. However, Platteville's defense held CSS without a shot on target over the final 45 minutes.
The breakthrough came for the Pioneers in the 80th minute, when a penalty kick was converted by Leah Ahlers to put the hosts ahead 1-0. Despite a late push, the Saints were unable to find the equalizer.
Platteville outshot St. Scholastica 20-2 on the night, but the Saints' defensive resilience kept the match within reach until the final whistle.
With the result, the Saints move to 0-2-1 on the season. They will look to bounce back on Sunday when they take on the University of Dubuque in Dubuque, Iowa at 1pm.
