Grand Rapids, MI – The Aquinas women scored twice in the first five minutes of the second half and held on for a 2-1 home win Wednesday night against rival Cornerstone University. The Saints stay unbeaten in the WHAC and have won back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Aquinas 2, Cornerstone 1

After a scoreless first 45 minutes, it was a wild five-minute sequence in the opening minutes of the second half that helped catapult the Saints to a second straight conference victory.

Less than a minute into the second half, Joy Reams' shot caromed off the crossbar, but teammate Savannah Reese collected the rebound and pushed it past the keeper to give the Saints a 1-0 advantage.

However, Cornerstone countered minutes later when a foul was called on Aquinas in the box.

The Golden Eagles converted the penalty kick against Kayla Shuk to knot the game at 1-1.

The Saints answered quickly, 44 seconds to be exact, when Catherine Hoff boomed a shot from 25 yards out that got past the keeper and into the back of the net for the go-ahead goal.

Aquinas' defense took over from there, limiting Cornerstone to only three shots in the second half.

Inside the Numbers

• The Saints outshot the Golden Eagles 17-9, including 9-3 in the second half.
• Keeper Kayla Shuk finished with five saves.
• Aquinas didn't have a corner kick for the first time this season.
• The Saints committed six fouls, while Cornerstone tallied eight.
• Savannah Reese and Joy Reams each had a team-high two shots on goal for Aquinas.

Coach's Comments

Head Coach Jenna Smith talked about the quick start in the second half. "The message in the locker room was to come out fast because we felt like we had them on the ropes at the end of the first half, so we just wanted to put the gas pedal down and keep it going. I don't think you can start a half better than that. I think we dominated the game, and we moved the ball well."                   

Up Next

The Saints (3-3, 2-0 WHAC) hit the road Saturday for a conference game against the University of Northwest Ohio Game time is 1 p.m. Fans are encouraged to visit AQSaints.com throughout the weekend for live stats, stories, and recaps.

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.