CHICAGO -- The University of St. Francis women's soccer team traveled to take on Saint Xavier University Saturday evening, looking to earn its fifth win in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference play. By night's end, the Fighting Saints did remain unbeaten in league play, but had to settle for a tie as the two teams fought to a scoreless draw after 90 minutes of play. With the tie, the Saints (6-3-5, 4-0-3 CCAC) take over sole possession of first place in the league standings with a one-point advantage over Olivet Nazarene University.
First Half
St. Francis kept offensive pressure on Saint Xavier's back line in the opening 45 minutes, but a strong defensive effort from the Cougars (5-3-2, 3-1-1) kept USF from having a solid opportunity at the goal. The Saints would record two shots in the period, but neither would threaten the SXU keeper as both attempts sailed wide right of the net. On the other end, Saint Xavier tallied eight shots total, but USF keeper
Krystal Rodriguez kept the Cougars off the board with one save in the 10th minute of play.
Second Half
The second half proved to be full of physical play as two yellow cards and 14 fouls were called after the break. USF's offensive pace increased as each minute went by with the St. Francis front line putting additional pressure on the Cougars' keeper. The Saints nearly scored on six straight shot attempts within a 10-minute time frame between the 60th and 70th minutes, but all resulted in SXU saves. USF's defense showcased a strong performance in the half, only allowing one SXU shot attempt over the 45 minutes. The Fighting Saints offense, however, could not connect on a go-ahead goal to secure the outright victory, ending the match with the 0-0 tie.
USF had the upper hand in shot attempts (11) and corner kicks (8) on the night, allowing Saint Xavier to total eight and two, respectively.
Mia Perri and
Mia Ocana led St. Francis with two shot attempts apiece, while all six on-target tries were recorded from six different players.
Up Next
The Saints are back in action at home on Tuesday (Oct. 15) against Indiana University Northwest starting at 7 pm.
You can keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on X @USFSaints.
