Albion, Mich. – The Saints took on the Brits today (Feb. 14) in a non-conference bout that went down to the wire. Albion took a four-goal lead in the fourth quarter, but the Saints nearly marched back to tie the game. AQ fell by just one goal after a scoreless final four minutes of play.

The result moves the Saints to 1-2 on the season, but AQ still remains undefeated in conference play (1-0).

Albion 14, Aquinas 13

The game started quietly as seven and a half minutes passed before anyone managed to find the back of the net. Aquinas turned the ball over in the attacking half and the Brits marched down the field and scored to break the deadlock. Albion doubled up its lead just a few seconds later with a free-position goal.

AQ responded roughly a minute later as Shaylin Rings found the back of the net off of a pass from Kennadie Minerich. Albion came back and found the net one more time to cap off a quiet first quarter with a 3-1 lead.

The scoring gates opened in the second quarter after Minerich started with her first goal of the game. The two teams continued to battle as both sides traded goals throughout the period. Brianna Trepins, Trinity Reynoso, Rings, and Minerich all scored in the second quarter, but ultimately the Brits held an 8-6 advantage heading into halftime.

Aquinas cut the deficit to just one goal in the third quarter after a yellow card issued to Albion gave the Saints a man-up advantage. Alex Sullivan punished the home side's mistake to make the score 9-8. However, a 3-1 run late in the quarter from Albion put AQ down three with just one quarter to play.

A thrilling fourth quarter ensued. Albion took a four-goal lead, but three Aquinas goals in one minute of play had the visitors trailing by just one with 10:12 to left to play.

The Brits scored their 14th goal of the contest as the game quieted down but, once again, Aquinas responded as Sullivan found the back of the net again to cut the lead back to just one with four minutes to go.

Sophia Schmader just missed a free position attempt with 2:38 left and then Minerich put a shot on target with just under a minute left on the scoreboard. However, Albion came up with a big save to effectively ice the game.

By the Numbers

Overall, the stat line was very close between the two teams. Albion outshot Aquinas 34-31, but another strong game in net from Kennedy Stilson kept AQ in it as she recorded 17 saves. Both teams had a similar number of turnovers and clears, but the difference came down to free position shots. Albion scored six of its 11 attempts while AQ scored two of its seven.

Rings ended the contest with four goals as she now has a team-leading nine this season. She also had an impressive six ground balls, three caused turnovers, and nine draw controls for a busy day.

Minerich continues to be a point-scoring machine for the Saints. She ended the game with a hat trick of both goals and assists and now trails the Aquinas all-time point record by just six points.

Sullivan, Trepins, and Reynoso ended the game with two goals. Alexis Villarini had a strong game defensively, recording four ground balls and four caused turnover while grabbing three draw controls. 

Up Next

The Saints are back on the turf in just under two weeks when they take on Kalamazoo on Wednesday, March 6th. The game is set to begin at 5:00 PM.