HOLLAND, Mich. – After waiting a day due to inclement weather, the Trine University women's soccer team finally took the field for their Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Tournament semifinal contest against the number two-seeded Hope College. After holding an early lead, the Thunder were ultimately defeated 3-2.
The ten minutes of the contest saw the Flying Dutch hold control of the flow of the game, mostly keeping the ball in their half of the field. They recorded a pair of shots, one going just wide, and the other forcing a save out of Trine's goalkeeper Sophie Aschemeier.
Then one of the home team's passes was intercepted near midline with just one Hope defender still in the Trine end of the field. Abigail Marks made the initial push and drove well into the penalty area setting herself up with a decent scoring chance. Instead of firing a shot she passed to her left for Bella Mabry giving her teammate an even better chance with a nearly empty net in front of her. Mabry scored the goal to give the team a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute of play.
The game returned to favoring the Flying Dutch over the next ten minutes, culminating in their first goal of the contest. The point came off a set piece on a corner in the 21st minute of the half.
Marks almost retook the lead for Trine on a corner kick of their own in the 25th minute, but the home keeper was ready for the shot.
The Flying Dutch came out firing in the second half, forcing three saves in the first 15 minutes along with a pair of other shots that missed the mark. The pressure culminated with another corner kick in the 60th minute of play. The team cashed in again to put Trine down 2-1.
That score would eventually go final, despite the best efforts by the Thunder.
The loss eliminates Trine from the tournament, ending their season. They finish the year with an 8-7-5 overall record.