JOLIET, Ill. -- The University of St. Francis women's soccer team took on Mount Mercy University (Iowa) Wednesday evening, looking to earn its third straight win of its 2025 campaign.  By night's end however, the Fighting Saints did remain unbeaten, but had to settle for a tie as the two teams fought to a scoreless draw after 90 minutes of play.  With the tie, St. Francis stands at 2-0-1 overall, while Mount Mercy has earned a 2-1-1 record.

First Half
In the opening half, both squads had solid opportunities to score, but neither team was able to find the back of the net.  St. Francis targeted the goal five times with its best opportunities coming in the 16th and 24th minutes.  The first look came after a MMU foul awarded the Saints with a free kick from 30 yards out.  Senior Kelly Flores tried to take advantage of the Mustang mistake by firing a shot towards the goal, resulting in the ball ricocheting flush off the left post back to teammate Isabel Diez.  Diez gathered the ball and took a secondary shot, but the attempt was saved by MMU goalkeeper Manuela Gutierrez.  Eight minutes later, the Saints looked to cash in on another promising opportunity from Flores after she saw an opening in the Mustang defense.  Flores' shot deflected off the crossbar, back to Mia Ocana, but the successive attempt was again stopped by a diving Gutierrez.  The Saints outshot the Mustangs in the first 45 minutes of action, 11-6, but could not connect for a score, keeping the game tied 0-0.

Second Half
In the second stanza, while Mount Mercy began to pick up its offensive pressure, Giselle Mata and the Saints' defense remained strong.  The Mustangs were able to target the goal six times in seven attempts with Mata shutting the door on each scoring bid.  As the clock ticked into the final 10 minutes of play, the Saints went on the attack and found themselves in a position to undertake four more offensive tries.  After its first two attempts on goal fell short, the Mustangs made the mistake of permitting two USF corner kicks in the final 1:12 minutes of play.  Each effort would come up empty for the Saints, however, with the final failed try occurring with four seconds remaining on the clock, ending the game in a 0-0 draw.

St. Francis finished the match outshooting the visitors 17-13.  The Saints were led offensively by Diez, who recorded a team-high seven shot attempts with six being on target.  Along with Diez, Flores (five) and Ocana (three) each targeted the goal multiple times, with Charlene Mendoza accounting for the remaining two attempts. In between the pipes, Mata's six saves led to her third consecutive shutout of the 2025 campaign.

Next Up
USF returns to action on Sept. 10 when it travels to Aurora, Ill. to take on Aurora University.  Opening kickoff against the Spartans is scheduled for 6 pm in the Spartan Athletic Complex.

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