Box Score For the second Saturday in a row, the St. Catherine University soccer team found itself with a one-goal lead heading into halftime against its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) opponent. And just like last Saturday, the Wildcats surrendered two second-half goals – this time at the hands of league-leading Augsburg College in Minneapolis – to suffer a 2-1 loss and fall to 1-3-0 in MIAC play. 

Despite the loss, Head Coach Chris Citowicki is impressed with the way his young squad played against the high-powered Auggie offense that hammered 25 shots toward the goal and held an 8-3 advantage in corner kicks. 

"It was an incredible game," said Citowicki. "I am very proud of the team and how far we've come in two years. There are still areas we need to fix, but at this point we're looking pretty good." 

As she has done all season, sophomore goalkeeper Danielle Mendez (Bloomington, Minn.) helped keep the Wildcats alive as she stopped 10 Auggie shots on goal – her second-highest save total this season. 

The Wildcats appeared they were on the road to their second-straight MIAC upset when Elly Leyva (San Jacinto, Calif.) buried a shot from 15 yards out on a pass from Julia Zyla (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) in the 50th minute to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead heading into the break. 

Unfortunately, Carter Denison beat Mendez twice in the second half to spoil the upset and help the Auggies remain unbeaten this season earning their fourth MIAC win to remain atop the conference standings. 

Lensa Gurmessa (Minneapolis, Minn.), Grace Lowry (Minneapolis, Minn.) and Hannah Okerstrom (Bayport, Minn.) each added a shot on goal to the Wildcats' offensive strike. 

The Wildcats return to action Tuesday as they travel to St. Bonafacious, Minn. to take on non-conference opponent Crown College at 4 p.m. 

Wildcats on Twitter
Wildcats on Facebook
Wildcat Soccer on Facebook