Grace Roundup: Lady Lancers Win Quarterfinal Match
Grace Roundup: Lady Lancers Win Quarterfinal Match
Posted
Josh Neuhart-
Grace Roundup: Lady Lancers Win Quarterfinal MatchWINONA LAKE – The Crossroads League Tournament started in victory for Grace College’s women’s soccer team on Wednesday.
The No. 16-ranked Lady Lancers (17-2) won 2-0 against Huntington University in the tournament quarterfinals, setting up a Top 25 rematch with No. 15 Marian in the semifinals. Grace will host the semifinals on Saturday at 2 p.m. at 1st Source Bank Field.
Within 10 minutes of action on Wednesday, Grace had two goal-scoring opportunities. Cassidy Wasson had the first chance, but her shot from an angle whistled wide.
Minutes later Allison Vroon weaved her way to the top of the penalty box. Her right-footed shot forced a diving save at the goalpost.
Grace continued to assault the Foresters’ goal, including a few long-range efforts from Joana Schimmel and another handful of chances in the box from Jenni Phillips and Shelby Fort.
The Lady Lancers’ pressure eventually broke down Huntington’s defense. Vroon beat a defender on the endline. Vroon’s lofted ball in the box was pawed in the air by Huntington’s goalkeeper, and Phillips pounced on the loose ball for the opening goal in the 29th minute.
Liz Van Wormer doubled Grace’s lead in the final minute of the half. She turned on her defender and ripped a 25-yard blast just below the crossbar.
Grace went into halftime with a 2-0 lead; the Lady Lancers also held a dominant 13-2 advantage in shots and a 2-0 edge in corner kicks.
The Lady Lancers continued to hold the better of possession and chances in the second half. Flavia Faria nearly scored midway through the half, but her headed effort glanced off the crossbar.
Grace had 13 shots after halftime, but the team was unable to add to its cushion. Wasson, Clair Snodgrass, Anna Kuhl and Sacia Hanson all had chances that were saved.
Bethany Blackwood, the reigning league Defensive Player of the Week, made two saves for her 15th shutout of the season. She was protected well by McKenna Cruz, Aubrey Feipel, Kuhl ad Liz Aalbue.
Schimmel had five shots, equaling the total amount of shots taken by Huntington. Overall, Grace owned a 26-5 shot edge while firing 13 shots per half.
Saturday’s semifinal showdown will be a rematch of the regular season finale, when Grace upset Marian in overtime on a memorable goal from Vroon.
Men’s Soccer
WINONA LAKE – Grace College’s men’s soccer team suffered a heartbreak on Wednesday in the Crossroads League Tournament quarterfinals.
The Lancers (12-3-4) tied Indiana Wesleyan University 3-3 after regulation and two overtimes. But the Wildcats (9-6-3) eliminated Grace in an epic penalty kick shootout.
Even before the match was decided with penalty kicks, Wednesday’s quarterfinal had plenty of drama.
IWU, the No. 7 seed in the field, shocked Grace by scoring in the 24th minute to go ahead 1-0.
Grace managed to tie the score before halftime when Togo Narusawa assisted Ivan Santagiuliana.
The Lancers’ momentum continued into the start of the second half. Breno Oliveira made a leading pass to Narusawa, and Narusawa’s low blast beat IWU’s goalkeeper for the go-ahead goal five minutes into the second half.
Midway through the half, Grace put the ball in the back of the net on a laser from Santagiuliana. But Grace’s goal was disallowed due to a foul call seconds earlier.
With less than 10 minutes to play, Grace added an insurance goal. Marcelo Talamas was fouled, and Breno Oliveira took the long free kick in front of the Lancers’ bench. His cross connected with Cody Boerema, whose looping header glanced off the post and into the net.
Boerema had a chance to score again minutes later on an empty net, but his chipped shot above the goalkeeper went wide of the net.
The Wildcats moved players into attack as they faced a two-goal deficit, and the tactic paid off. IWU incredibly tied the game, scoring twice in the final five minutes to force overtime.
The overtime periods were played evenly with IWU holding a slight 5-4 edge in shot attempts. But neither side was able to find a golden goal winner, sending the match to a penalty shootout.
IWU missed three of its first four penalty kicks to give Grace a golden opportunity; Kurt Hamlin came up clutch by saving two of those early attempts against the Wildcats.
Grace failed to capitalize, however, misfiring on three straight attempts to let the Wildcats even the score.
The PK shootout turned into an instant classic at that stage as each kick taker continued to convert. The shootout saw 19 consecutive successful PK attempts, reaching to 14 rounds of drama. But finally Grace was saved, allowing IWU to pull off the upset and reach the semifinals.
“The guys bounced back after an unsteady first 20 minutes and showed some courage to build a 3-1 lead. We had opportunities to get more, and we didn’t have the steely mentality needed to finish the job. Truthfully we were sloppy tonight and overly emotional with the heaviness of the game,” said Grace head coach Matt Hotchkin. “The decision to call back our fourth goal was an emotional momentum swing, and we lost composure and got disorganized.”
Grace outshot IWU 25-18 overall in the contest, including 21-13 in regulation. Hamlin saved 10 shots in 110 minutes in a strong contest, and he converted a PK attempt during the shootout.
Narusawa and Ulisses Miranda shot four times to lead Grace, and Colin Cape and Talamas each had three shots.
“Kurt did an admirable job in PKs, and we couldn’t regain the lead after we lost it. This is a team sport, and we win and lose together,” Hotchkin said.
“My dad spoke to our team before a game this season, and his message was that forgiveness is needed when you work together. We have to forgive each other, be thankful for what we have, and look to tomorrow. We will regroup and focus on the NCCAA tournament. The guys have the character needed to push on.”
The Lancers will regroup for NCCAA qualifying. Grace will likely play at least one match in NCCAA regional play in an attempt to reach a fourth consecutive NCCAA national tournament.
Volleyball
WINONA LAKE – Grace College’s volleyball team dropped its Senior Night match 3-1 to Goshen College on Wednesday.
The Lady Lancers had 64 kills in the four-set match, but Grace’s miscues cost the Lady Lancers. Grace committed 22 attack errors, six serving errors and four blocking violations.
Goshen pulled out a pair of 25-23 wins to help upset the Lady Lancers (19-15, 11-7 Crossroads League). The Maple Leafs (9-25, 3-15 CL) won 25-23 in both the first and third sets.
The Lady Lancers managed to even up the match with a 25-21 win in the second set, but Goshen won again in the third set.
Grace led 19-16 late in the third game, but Goshen rallied to win nine of the last 12 rallies to take the set.
The fourth set belonged to Goshen. Grace had its worst offensive output with seven attack errors and a .079 attack percentage, and the Maple Leafs had 14 kills on just two errors to seal the match 25-16.
Gabbey Harrington, filling in for All-American setter Alexa Hill, had a career-best evening. Harrington amassed 52 assists, 11 digs and five kills in a strong outing.
Grace’s four seniors all played important roles in the match. Marta Bleed and Kelsee Zuidema tied for match honors with 16 kills, Caylie Teel notched a double-double with 13 kills and 15 digs, and Kelsey Smith added five kills on a .333 percentage.
Gina Novotny led all players with 26 digs, Caroline Mayer had 12 digs, and Makaela Lochmueller chipped in eight kills.
The regular season officially ended on Wednesday night for Grace. The Lady Lancers transition to postseason play, which starts Saturday. Grace, the No. 4 seed in the upcoming Crossroads League Tournament, will host Taylor on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the quarterfinals at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.
