UPLAND, Ind. – Sydney Thompson scored her first goal of the season on Saturday in a tough loss against a formidable opponent, No. 5 Aquinas (3-0-0).
The Saints struck early and looked to control the match with two goals in the first fifteen minutes and firing off 12 of their 31 total shots.
Four substitutions in the first half helped Taylor get a foothold in the match. A pair of the players who came off the bench and share a name, Thompson and Sydney Reddy, combined to halve the deficit for the Trojans ten minutes before halftime. Reddy took a pass from fellow sub Eliza Luttrell and fired a long pass to the opposite side of the field for Thompson, who made a change of direction to get some space and fired a shot into the bottom corner for her first goal of the season.
Reddy came close to tying the match at a pair later in the half but was denied by an outstanding save from the opposing keeper on a line drive kick from just outside the six-yard box.
After halftime, the Saints pushed their advantage to a pair when a loose ball found its way to the feet of their forward, who slotted home for the 3-1 lead.
Taylor had another great chance when Meskerem James made a terrific run from midfield and threaded a through ball to Luttrell, who deftly touched it onto her dominant foot and stabbed a shot that was miraculously saved to deny the goal.
TU fired eight of its 13 shots on target for an impressive 62 percent on-target percentage. The Trojans took six corners compared to five from their opponents as well. Thompson, led the Trojans with a game-high four shots
RV Taylor (0-1-2) has its first match against a team neither ranked nor receiving votes, with a home match against Indiana Tech (0-3-0) on Wednesday, September 4, with kick-off scheduled for 4:00 pm.
