BELMONT, Calif. - Three first half goals proved to be too much for the Saints to overcome as they fell 3-0 on the road to Notre Dame de Namur on Saturday afternoon.
The first goal of the match came in the 10th minute of action after a corner kick found Alina Martinez's header for her second goal of the season. Abigail Dyer recorded the second goal in the 12th minute and the final blow came in the 21st minute on a goal from Ellie Mujushi to put the Argonauts (1-1) up 3-0 over the Saints (0-2).
The Saints attacked first, attempting a shot on goal in the first 35 seconds on a kick by
Selesha Harrah that was saved by the Argonauts' keeper. The Saints took one more shot on goal in the first half, coming in 27th minute by
Kylee Sarchett. Sarchett and
Shea McKnight each took shots that missed and a header by
Dulce Armas went just high of the net in the 37th minute of the first half.
The Saints' defense shut down the Argonauts attack in the second half, as
Ali Koehler made nine saves in the second half, including two in the 55th minute. Sarchett recorded one more shot on goal and a ball from McKnight went high in the 87th minute as the match came to a 3-0 end.
"This game was a tale of two halves for us," said head coach
Heather Cato. "We came out flat in the first half and forced ourselves to have to chase the game too early. Credit
Ali Koehler for coming up big in gaol today to help keep the game in reach. It was a good response from Thursday's result but we have to continue to get one percent better each day."
Sarchett led the Saints with three shots, two of which landed on target. Harrah and McKnight each added two shots and Armas' one rounded the eight shots taken by the Saints on the day. Koehler played all 90 minutes at keeper and finished with 11 saves, tying her for seventh in most saves in a match in Saint Martin's history.
The Saints return to Washington State for a match with NAIA opponent Northwest University on September 5 at 2:30 p.m. in Kirkland, Washington. Live stats and video will be available of the match and will be produced by host team Northwest.
