Spring Arbor, MI – The Aquinas women's soccer team nearly pulled off an incredible second-half comeback, but ultimately fell short in a 3-2 loss to eight-ranked University of the Cumberlands (KY) at Spring Arbor University. 

The ninth-ranked Saints lost their first game of the 2025 season under new head coach Jenna Smith and finished the Labor Day weekend 1-1 after a 1-0 win over Campbellsville (KY) on Saturday. 

Cumberlands 3, Aquinas 2 

The Saints surrendered two goals in the first half and fell behind 3-0 early in the second half before mounting a furious comeback.

Cumberlands scored for the third time less than eight minutes into the second half, but Aquinas didn't quit and showed resilience in the final 20 minutes with two unanswered goals.

Junior forward Emily Gignac took a corner kick and lofted it over goalkeeper Morgan White's head to put the Saints on the board.

Defensively, the Saints battled to keep themselves within striking distance. Goalkeeper Kayla Shuk turned away eight shots to anchor the back line, while Catherine Hoff and Savannah Reese were active in disrupting play and limiting opportunities in the midfield. On the attacking end, Aquinas had several players threaten the net, as Bella Teelander fired two shots (one on goal), Abigail Kramer tested the keeper from distance, and Julia Grzadkowska added another late effort that kept the pressure on.

Aquinas kept attacking and pulled within a goal with two minutes remaining.

Junior forward Dailey Tucker made a cross that looped in past White to trim the deficit to 3-2.

The Saints drew a free kick in the final seconds and had an opportunity for the equalizer, but the ball was cleared out of the box by the Patriots as time expired. 

Inside the Numbers 

• Aquinas goalkeeper Kayla Shuk registered eight saves.
• The Saints held the Patriots to zero corner kicks in the second half after allowing five in the first half.
• Nicole Araujo tallied two goals for unbeaten Cumberlands and now has five on the season. 
• The Saints were outshot for the second game in a row 17-8, including 11-6 in the second half. 

Coaches' Comments

Head Coach Jenna Smith was encouraged by her team's weekend effort: "I learned a lot and I think the team learned a lot. I asked them after the game if they were discouraged or encouraged by the result today and they said, 'encouraged', so that was the answer I was looking for. We wanted to take two wins out of the weekend, but I think we learned a lot about how we react to things. Overall, just really happy with the performances in two really tough games in a tight turnaround. It tells me a lot about the attitude and work ethic of the team and I'm really excited to see where we can go from here."

Up Next

The Saints (1-1) have a short break before their home opener on Saturday, September 13 at noon against Indiana Wesleyan. The game will be played before the AQ Men's Team challenges Taylor as part of an AQ soccer doubleheader

NOTE:  Dean Holzwarth, serving as the Senior AQSaints Athletics Reporter & Content Specialist for AQSaints.com, brings decades of journalistic precision and storytelling flair to the Saints' media efforts. Previously, he covered high school sports for five years at Grand Rapids–based WOOD-TV, following a 16-year tenure in sports reporting with the Grand Rapids Press and MLive. His deep experience in capturing the heartbeat of local athletics now fuels his engaging coverage of Aquinas College sports.