JOLIET, Ill. -- The University of St. Francis women's soccer team hosted Saint Xavier University Wednesday evening, needing a win to move its way into the second place slot within Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference standings, but by night's end, the Fighting Saints had to settle for a 1-0 loss after 90 minutes of play.  With the defeat, the Saints (8-3-2, 5-2-1 CCAC) dropped down to fourth place in the league standings with a one-point advantage over Viterbo University.

First Half
St. Francis kept offensive pressure on SXU's back line in the opening 45 minutes, but a strong defensive effort from the Cougars kept USF from having a solid opportunity at the goal.  The Saints would record six shots in the period, with two threatening the SXU keeper, but none would find the back of the net holding USF scoreless in the period.  On the other end, Saint Xavier tallied five shots in total, but USF keeper Giselle Mata kept the Cougars off the board with three saves.

Second Half
The second half proved to be full of physical play as two yellow cards and 10 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 within the first 30 seconds of play followed by two blocked shot attempts in the 52nd minute, but all resulted in non-converted opportunities.  USF's defense showcased a strong performance in the half, allowing just four shot attempts on-goal, but the Cougars were finally able to connect on a go-ahead goal to secure the outright victory in the 61st minute to end the match with the 1-0 advantage.

Saint Xavier (6-4-4, 5-1-3 CCAC) had the upper hand in shot attempts (16) on the night, allowing St. Francis to total 15.  Kelly Flores led USF with five shot attempts, while all four on-target tries were recorded from four different players.

Up Next
The Saints are back in action on Saturday (Oct. 18) when they travel to Whiting, Ind. to take on Calumet College of St. Joseph (Ind.) starting at 10 am.

You can keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on X @USFSaints.