NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Saint Mary's soccer team fell 2-0 on Wednesday afternoon against in-state conference foe Trine in the first MIAA match of the season for both sides.

 

Both teams had chances early in the contest. Jillian Bowen had a shot from distance saved in the fifth minute while Kara Stacey returned the favor with a save on a shot on goal in the eighth minute. Mary Kaczynski added a shot on goal that was picked up for a save. Trine got on the scoreboard in the 14th minute on a shot from inside the box. Grace Barresi battled to try to find the equalizer less than six minutes later, but her effort from the top of the 18-yard box was corralled with a save. The defense withheld pressure from the Thunder offense, and Kara Stacey kept the Belles within striking distance with a diving stop on a cross in the box on what would have been an open shot on goal with under 17 minutes remaining before halftime. Saint Mary's, meanwhile, returned the pressure over much of the final five minutes of the period. Barresi fired another shot from the top of the box after the Belles won back possession deep in the attacking third, but her effort went just left of the post. Moments later, Saint Mary's forced Trine into another turnover in the Belles' offensive end as Katie Harrington took a crack at a shot as her attempt went wide right.

 

Saint Mary's carried that momentum over into the second period. In the 49th minute of action, the Belles had a great look at a potential equalizer. Izzi Linus found Mary Kaczynski along the left side of the field, and Kaczynski redirected the pass from Linus with a header in the box. The ball found its way to Kaitlyn Day, and the junior hit a one-timer in the box but had the shot saved point-blank as the Belles continued to be turned away. Kara Stacey made two big saves in quick succession with punches over the crossbar in the 51st and 52nd minutes of action as the score remained 1-0. Janelle Aiello registered yet another shot on goal for the Belles that was picked up for a save in the 54th minute. Trine netted a second goal in the 62nd minute for a 2-0 advantage.

 

The final ten minutes of play saw the Belles make several pushes offensively. Bowen had a shot from the top of the box saved on a one-hop in the 81st minute. Felicity Matthews nearly found the ball at her feet less than two yards away from goal after a second effort in the box to try to keep possession for the Belles with under six minutes remaining. Lauren Ryan, Ava Slater, and Emily Stross used a string of passes along the right sideline to transition from defense to offense quickly in the 85th minute, but Stross saw her cross end up in the hands of the Trine goalkeeper. Kara Stacey made a big stop on a 1v1 with under three minutes to go to keep the Thunder from a potential breakaway opportunity as the sophomore goalkeeper pushed the ball out of harm's way, but the Belles were unable to break through into the scoring column in the 2-0 final.

 

Jillian Bowen and Grace Barresi each had two shots in the game. Kaitlyn Day, Lindsey Adent, Mary Kaczynski, Katie Harrington, and Janelle Aiello each registered a shot. Kara Stacey made five saves in goal for the Belles.

Saint Mary's (0-6-3, 0-1 MIAA) have a break from action this weekend and are back on the pitch on Tuesday, October 4 when they travel to Calvin for a 7:00 p.m. contest.