ANGOLA, Ind. -- A late goal brought the Trine University women's soccer team back within striking distance of visiting Calvin University, but the team was unable to finish off the comeback attempt and would fall to the nationally recognized program 3-2.
The Knights, who are receiving votes in the national coaches poll, struck first in the contest. The goal came off of a turnover near midfield that the team played up the right side before passing it back to right in front of the net.
The Thunder answered the goal just over five minutes later. Following a saved penalty kick, Trine was awarded a corner and junior Veronica Ocampo (Elkhart, Ind. / Elkhart Memorial) lined up the attempt. After the ball fell amongest a scrum of jerseys from both sides, freshman Teresa Ashbrook (Dewitt, Mich. / Dewitt) settled the ball and pushed a ball into the left corner of the net.
The goal, which was Ashbrooks 14th of the year, was a historic one for the program, breaking the team record for points in a season.
Calvin would catch Trine on their back foot following the goal, scoring just 12 seconds after the ensuing kickoff to take back the lead. They would add to the lead just short of six minutes remaining in the half and make the score 3-1 heading into intermission.
The Thunder made adjustments at half and wer able to stifle the Knights' offense in the second half, but continued to struggle to find offense of their own.
That started to change as the period wore on, culminating in the team receiving a free kick from ten yards outside of the penalty area with just over 15 minutes remaining. Once again Ocampo took the attempt, placing the ball inside the goal area where junior Andrea Wright (Plainfield, Ind. / Plainfield) was left unattended. Wright got enough of a header on the ball to deflect it over the keepers hands for the goal.
The Thunder would press offensively for the remainder of the contest, but were unable to find the back of the net again and Calvin would escape with the 3-2 victory.
Trine falls to 12-2-1 overall and 3-2 in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play. With just three games remaining in the regular season the team is in a tight race for playoff seeding. Currently the Thunder sit in a tie for fourth with Kalamazoo College, but they are just one point out of third and three points out of second with the tiebreaker over Adrian College.
The team will look to break out of their tie when they travel to face Kalamazoo in their next contest. The match is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
