BANNOCKBURN, IL — In a game that kicked off on an overcast Tuesday afternoon at Schartner Field but wouldn't finish until nearly 24 hours later, the Trojans conceded an eventful and peculiar match to Judson University by a 3-2 score.
Under stormy skies, the 4 o'clock match proceeded as scheduled, despite the occasional flash of distant lightning and increasingly ominous cloud cover. The game remained scoreless for nearly a half hour, as the Trojans stood toe-to-toe with the Judson Eagles, a team earning votes toward national recognition for their impressive start to the campaign. After a couple of terrific diving saves by the Trojans' dependable goalkeeper Sarah Davis maintained the early deadlock, the Eagles finally broke through in the 29th minute, pouncing on a bouncing ball in the box to claim a 1-0 advantage. Just a few minutes later, with the conditions continuing to intensify, the officials called a stoppage to the contest due to the lightning strikes working their way towards the vicinity of the pitch. Out of an abundance of caution and an emphasis on the safety of the teams and spectators, the match was eventually postponed to the following day.
The rival sides retook the field on Wednesday at 2 o'clock to attempt to finish out the impactful conference clash. After finishing out the final minutes of the first half with no more action on the scoresheet, the Eagles ramped up the intensity on day two and struck again early in the second stanza, heading home a cross to double the advantage. However, the Trojans continued to show the fight that has characterized the early portion of their season, cutting into the deficit just over a minute later when veteran forward Abigail Olsson slotted a ball across the face of goal before Sarah Krick tucked it into the right corner to set the score at 2-1. Krick's tally marked her third consecutive match with a goal scored, a remarkable achievement for a freshman who was recruited as a goalkeeper. However, the Eagles answered the Davis tally in kind shortly after, capping a riveting stretch of play with another goal to shift momentum back to Judson, who now held a 3-1 advantage. The Trojans continued to show their warrior spirit up until the final whistle and got a surge of hope when the versatile Morgan Busick, who has contributed massively to the Trojan defensive unit this season, lofted a ball into the box that found a dead area and was mishandled by the Judson keeper, finding the back of the net to trim the Eagles' lead to 3-2. However, despite a furious effort from the Trojans in the final 90 seconds, the one-goal margin would hold up, resulting in another hard-fought, tightly contested defeat for Trinity.
Despite the loss, the Trojans could find more than a fragment of silver lining after the nip-and-tuck battle. For starters, their showing against a quality opponent proved that this Trojan team can hang with nearly anyone in the country, and showed marked improvement from their seven- and eight-goal defeats to ranked squads to open the year. The explosive freshman keeper-turned-striker Krick finding the back of the net again nearly cements her ability as a consistent attacking option, while the defense anchored by Zoe Villont, Elizabeth Bayert, Kinsey Gomez, Micah Wassink, and the aforementioned goal-scorer Busick turned in an impressive effort against a tireless offense, as did goalie Sarah Davis, who continued her remarkable campaign with another effort with double-digit saves, this time hauling in 11 for Trinity.
Up Next:
The Trojans (1-5-1) will get a breather from conference play as they seek to turn their impressive contributions into a solid result when they take on the Sabercats of Maranatha Baptist University at home again this afternoon at 4 o'clock.
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Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness, and lifelong learning.
