Notre Dame, Ind. — The Holy Cross College women’s soccer team dropped a hard-fought match on Wednesday night, falling 2–1 to the University of St. Francis (Ill.) at Saints Field. The loss marks the Saints’ first setback in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference play this season.
Holy Cross struck first in the 15th minute when Frances Parks buried a shot off an assist from Mia Garatoni, giving the Saints an early 1–0 advantage. The Cougars responded before halftime, leveling the score at 1–1 in the 33rd minute on a finish from Mia Ocana.
The match remained deadlocked deep into the second half as both sides traded chances. Saints goalkeeper Janiah Juarez put in a standout performance, recording 12 saves to keep her team in contention.
In the closing minutes, St. Francis capitalized on a late opportunity. The Fighting Saints were awarded a penalty kick in the 88th minute, and converted to give St. Francis the decisive goal.
Despite a strong push in the final moments, the Saints couldn’t find the equalizer. Holy Cross finished with 16 shots to St. Francis’s 17, highlighting the evenly matched contest.
With the result, the Saints move to 3-5-1 overall and 2-1-1 in CCAC play. They’ll look to bounce back in their next conference matchup on Saturday when they travel to Viterbo. Kickoff is set for 1PM