Griffins Second Half Surge Comes Up Short Against Lions

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Fontbonne University women's soccer team had another late push in them against Mount St. Joseph, however, the Lions escaped Centene Stadium with a 2-1 win.

Fontbonne (1-7), totaled 12 shots in the outing and were paced by Jacey Pate's one goal on three shots. Karlie Peth also stood out with her two shots. In net, Mary Beers did all she could after making a career-high 15 saves.

The Lions (7-1), ended the hot afternoon with 24 shots. The team got its goals from Morgan Knasel and Kaylan Gruber, while Michelle Hessling made seven saves in goal.

In the first half, it was Beers keeping the Griffins in it throughout with her ability to come up with quality saves. MSJ continued its offensive pressure though and they finally broke through late in the half.

At the 42:51 mark, Emma Roth passed the ball up for Knasel and she beat the sliding Beers on the far post to give them a 1-0 lead at the half.

In the second half, the Lions struck again at 51:03. Brenna Lonneman received the pass from Kara Vennemeier at midfield and she passed it up for the speedy Gruber. The forward was able to get behind the Griffins defense and score, giving MSJ a 2-0 lead.

After allowing the goal, however, Fontbonne picked up the pressure as they dominated the final 30:00 minutes of play. In the 82^nd minute, Ellen Weaver played a perfect through ball for Pate and with the Hessling playing well out of the box, she lifted the ball over the Lions net-minder and into the net, making it a 2-1 game.

The Griffins made one final push but Pate's shot went wide right of the net. That'd be the teams' final attempt with the Lions hanging on for the win.

FBU will be back at it next Tuesday as they'll pay a visit to Oakland City. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates and recaps on the women's soccer team.