Upland, Indiana — The No. 5-ranked Aquinas Saints traveled down to Upland, Indiana, to take on the (RV) Trojans of Taylor on Saturday (Aug. 31). AQ was dominant in the first thirty minutes of play as they notched two goals and held control of the contest. The team got comfortable which the Trojans took advantage of as they switched the momentum with a late goal in the first. The Saints later regained their lead in the second half, which they then maintained to secure a win in Upland.

#5 Aquinas 3, (RV) Taylor 1

AQ walked onto the pitch with authority as they have climbed to fifth in the national rankings. The authority transferred into the Saints play as they held the Trojans down in a dominant play-style. Aquinas found the faults in the Trojan defense as Marie-Louise Abild found a cross-body strike from a lob sent in by Brittney Probst. The sensational display of skill echoed the Saints feeling of authority. 

AQ continued their dominant display of play as they added another to the scoreboard as Sydney Shenk sunk a touch and turn ball from Maeva Lichtensteiger. Aquinas was up 2-0 within 15 minutes of the road contest. 

The Saints continued their play but began to grow confident which let their play to slow down. This is where the Trojans found a reignited flame and started to press into the Aquinas defense. The following 20 minutes Taylor was in control, switching the momentum of the entire match. Here TU sunk a goal past the AQ backline. 

The remainder of the first saw Taylor press on as AQ played catch-up. No team found an additional goal in the first. 

The second half began with a Taylor touch as they continued to test the Saints. 

AQ, while being tested, still managed to find their chances and breakthroughs. Shenk returned for a second dose, as she tagged in goal while making several defenders miss.

Taylor continued their conquest for another goal, but the Saints staved off the assault as they thwarted the offensive attempts. Goalkeeper Kayla Shuk was incredibly influential in this effort by making a number of physical saves in addition to lifting the Aquinas head space. 

Aquinas finished the bout out by keeping the scoreboard to 3-1 difference. As the final whistle blew, the Saints had officially found another road win.

By the Numbers

• Aquinas out shot Taylor 31-13, 11 shots on goal to TU's eight.
• Shenk tallied two goals, making for her third of the season.
• Abild earned her first goal of the season in a stunning fashion.
• Shuk totaled seven saves.

Up Next

The team will have a rest period as their next match will be on Saturday (Sep. 13) at 3:00 p.m. at Indiana Tech for their season conference opener.