ANGOLA, Ind. - The Saint Mary's soccer team fell in a 5-1 final against Trine to close out the 2019 season.
Saint Mary's put the pressure on the Thunder early and often throughout the first half of play.
Lexi Trombly sent a shot just wide and
Megan Saunders sailed a header over the crossbar in the tenth minute. Trombly then had a shot saved, and
Jillian Bowen and
Rose Stackhouse each added a shot over the next four minutes of action. Stackhouse then earned a corner kick for Saint Mary's in the 21st minute, and the Belles capitalized on the chance as
Becca Stella buried the close-range shot for the 1-0 lead.
Less than a minute later, the Belles were nearly the beneficiaries of a botched play deep in the Trine end as a misplayed ball by the Thunder goalkeeper nearly ended up in the back of the net.
Thallia Robles came up with a save in the 30th minute to keep the Thunder off the scoreboard on Trine's best scoring chance of the half as the Belles held the 1-0 advantage at the halftime break.
Trine shifted the momentum quickly in the second half as the Thunder tallied goals in the 55th, 56th, and 58th minute to gain a 3-1 advantage. An additional Trine goal in the 80th minute gave the home side a 4-1 lead, but the Belles made a big offensive push on the ensuing restart.
Jillian Bowen made a run along the left flank and was rewarded with a pass at the top corner of the 18-yard box. The freshman worked into space and fired a rising shot, but the strike was pushed just over the crossbar by the Trine goalkeeper for the Belles' best scoring chance of the period. The Thunder made the most of a corner kick in the 83rd minute with their fifth goal of the contest for the four-goal final margin.
The Belles finish the season 5-11-1 overall with a 0-7-1 mark in MIAA contests.
