Grace College Sports Recaps For Sept. 21
September 23, 2019 at 2:38 a.m.
Grace College Sports Recaps For Sept. 21
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WINONA LAKE – For the second time this week, JJ Aalbue terrorized opponents for No. 16 Grace College’s women’s soccer team.
Aalbue picked up her second hat trick of the week – two in four days – to lead the Lady Lancers (8-1) to a 7-1 victory over Cleary at 1st Source Bank Field. She also recorded three assists in a dazzling display.
Grace outshot Cleary 29-2 in the match, including a 17-0 difference in the second half.
Cleary shocked the hosts by scoring first. The Cougars (2-3) capitalized on a poor pass from Grace’s back line to score in the fourth minute.
Grace was calm in its response, applying consistent pressure on the Cougars’ half of the field.
The Lady Lancers knotted the game just over 10 minutes later. Aalbue beat a defender on the right side of the field and crossed a low pass in front of the goal. Liz Van Wormer pounced on the loose ball and blasted her shot into the back of the net at the 15:55 mark.
Aalbue took care of the rest. She scored two goals before halftime to put the Lady Lancers ahead for good.
Aalbue’s first goal in the 25th minute was a moment of individual brilliance. She collected the ball in Grace’s defensive third and charged up the left sideline. Aalbue took the attention of numerous defenders and still freed herself for a shot; the shot hit the back of the net in a split second, giving Cleary’s goalkeeper no chance to make a save.
Grace was patient in its possession attack, resulting in Aalbue’s second goal. Cassidy Wasson dribbled dangerously toward the top of Cleary’s penalty box. She cleverly slid a pass ahead to Aalbue, who finished her shot under pressure at the 39:10 mark.
The Lady Lancers led 3-1 at the half after holding a 12-2 shot advantage.
It took Grace just two minutes in the second half to score, sparked again by Aalbue. The freshman gained an edge on the right side and crossed to the near post. Van Wormer was there, similar to the game’s first goal, to finish off Aalbue’s assist.
Aalbue nearly had a third goal shortly after, but her shot clanged off the goalpost. Corinne Villalobos also had a shot bounce off the post.
Sacia Hanson, who had come close several times earlier in the half, found the back of the net. She sliced her shot to the far post and above the goalkeeper at the 62:54 mark.
Aalbue wrapped up her second straight hat trick a minute after subbing back into the game. The freshman found a sliver of space and hit a laser past the goalkeeper from an impossibly tight angle in the 71st minute.
The seventh and final goal was a well-worked free kick. Lea Moessinger and Aalbue combined to find Taylor Fort, and Fort scored her first collegiate goal at the 78:58 mark.
Madison Putman made one save to earn the win in goal. Aalbue tried 10 shots in the match, Van Wormer shot five times, and Hanson and Villalobos each shot four times.
The Lady Lancers start Crossroads League play next week. Grace is at Huntington on Wednesday to begin conference play. The Lady Lancers won a share of the league title in 2018 for the first time in program history.
Rozas Wins ITA Regionals
WINONA LAKE – Max Rozas continued his dream season for Grace’s men’s tennis team at the ITA Regional Tournament this weekend.
Rozas claimed the championship for the singles’ bracket to advance to ITA Nationals. The national tournament will be held in Newport Beach, Calif., starting Nov. 6.
Rozas is just the second Lancer to compete at ITA Nationals, joining Danila Kurkulin who also won the regional singles’ tournament in 2016.
Incredibly, Rozas never dropped a set throughout the 64-person tournament. Rozas, the No. 3 seed in the field, coasted through the first two rounds on Thursday and then won again twice in straight sets on Friday.
In the semifinals on Saturday morning, Rozas beat Indiana Wesleyan’s ace Martin Carrizo 6-4, 6-3.
In the finals, Rozas was pitted against UNOH’s Marcos Salazar. The sophomore continued his efficient play with a 6-3, 6-0 victory to claim the crown.
Grace Men’s Soccer Wins Fifth Straight
HOWELL, Mich. - Grace’s men’s soccer team wrapped up the nonconference season in style, beating Cleary 4-2 on the road Saturday.
The Lancers (6-1-1) stretched their winning streak to five games; Grace’s offense has been electric during that streak, producing 20 goals during the five-game winning streak.
Saturday’s match was even for the first 65 minutes. Each team scored once in the opening half.
Grace scored at the beginning to take an early advantage. Jonny Mora sent in a corner kick in the sixth minute, and Ivan Santagiuliana netted on the play.
The Cougars (2-2) managed to equalize in the 37th minute, sending the game into halftime with a 1-1 deadlock.
Cleary was credited with a 9-3 edge in shots, but Grace’s offense was just warming up.
After 20 minutes of play in the second half, the game was still tied. But over the next 12 minutes, Grace wrapped up the victory.
At the 66:22 mark, Ze Maria Goncalves assisted Marcelo Talamas for the go-ahead goal.
Ulisses Miranda and Felipe Gruber’s connection provided the rest. Miranda netted in the 73rd minute after an assist by Gruber. Miranda returned the favor by assisting Gruber at the 78:30 mark for a 4-1 lead.
The Cougars tried to keep pressure on the Lancers with their second goal in the 85th minute, but Grace’s defense stood firm for the final minutes.
Talamas tried three shots to lead Grace, and Gruber had two shots on goal.
The Lancers return home next week to kick off the Crossroads League season. Grace’s league opener is a crucial one, hosting Huntington on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Foresters are currently receiving votes in the NAIA.
Lancer VB’s Streak Snapped By USF
WINONA LAKE – A four-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday for Grace’s volleyball team.
The Lady Lancers lost 3-0 to St. Francis, who is receiving votes in the NAIA and currently second in the Crossroads League.
The Cougars (14-5, 6-1 CL) could not be slowed on offense, picking up 11 more kills than the Lady Lancers (8-10, 4-3 CL) at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.
The first set was evenly played, but unforced errors by Grace lost the set. The Cougars held a slight lead for much of the game and led 24-21. But Grace rallied with a kill by Makaela Lochmueller and a block point to make the score 24-23.
USF’s attack was headed out of bounds on the next rally, but the Cougars were saved by a blocking error from the Lady Lancers to secure the set 25-23. The Lady Lancers had eight attack errors which helped to nullify their 14 kills.
Grace could not slow down USF’s offense in the second set. The Cougars erupted for 19 kills at a .586 percentage, easing away to a 25-20 victory.
For the first time in the match, Grace started out strongly in the third set. Grace jumped out to a 7-0 lead to force an early timeout by USF. Gabbey Harrington and Corynne Aelker both had two kills, and Lochmueller added three block assists.
But the Cougars showed poise to battle back. USF managed to tie the score 9-9 to erase Grace’s strong start.
The momentum continued for USF as the Cougars rolled to another five-point win to cement the sweep.
Harrington led all players with 12 kills on a .320 percentage, and Lochmueller added six kills and six block assists.
Alexa Hill tallied 28 assists, 8 digs and 3 kills, Emily Sharp had 10 digs, and Aelker added five kills and five digs.
The Lady Lancers are on the road this week, playing at Huntington on Friday night.
WINONA LAKE – For the second time this week, JJ Aalbue terrorized opponents for No. 16 Grace College’s women’s soccer team.
Aalbue picked up her second hat trick of the week – two in four days – to lead the Lady Lancers (8-1) to a 7-1 victory over Cleary at 1st Source Bank Field. She also recorded three assists in a dazzling display.
Grace outshot Cleary 29-2 in the match, including a 17-0 difference in the second half.
Cleary shocked the hosts by scoring first. The Cougars (2-3) capitalized on a poor pass from Grace’s back line to score in the fourth minute.
Grace was calm in its response, applying consistent pressure on the Cougars’ half of the field.
The Lady Lancers knotted the game just over 10 minutes later. Aalbue beat a defender on the right side of the field and crossed a low pass in front of the goal. Liz Van Wormer pounced on the loose ball and blasted her shot into the back of the net at the 15:55 mark.
Aalbue took care of the rest. She scored two goals before halftime to put the Lady Lancers ahead for good.
Aalbue’s first goal in the 25th minute was a moment of individual brilliance. She collected the ball in Grace’s defensive third and charged up the left sideline. Aalbue took the attention of numerous defenders and still freed herself for a shot; the shot hit the back of the net in a split second, giving Cleary’s goalkeeper no chance to make a save.
Grace was patient in its possession attack, resulting in Aalbue’s second goal. Cassidy Wasson dribbled dangerously toward the top of Cleary’s penalty box. She cleverly slid a pass ahead to Aalbue, who finished her shot under pressure at the 39:10 mark.
The Lady Lancers led 3-1 at the half after holding a 12-2 shot advantage.
It took Grace just two minutes in the second half to score, sparked again by Aalbue. The freshman gained an edge on the right side and crossed to the near post. Van Wormer was there, similar to the game’s first goal, to finish off Aalbue’s assist.
Aalbue nearly had a third goal shortly after, but her shot clanged off the goalpost. Corinne Villalobos also had a shot bounce off the post.
Sacia Hanson, who had come close several times earlier in the half, found the back of the net. She sliced her shot to the far post and above the goalkeeper at the 62:54 mark.
Aalbue wrapped up her second straight hat trick a minute after subbing back into the game. The freshman found a sliver of space and hit a laser past the goalkeeper from an impossibly tight angle in the 71st minute.
The seventh and final goal was a well-worked free kick. Lea Moessinger and Aalbue combined to find Taylor Fort, and Fort scored her first collegiate goal at the 78:58 mark.
Madison Putman made one save to earn the win in goal. Aalbue tried 10 shots in the match, Van Wormer shot five times, and Hanson and Villalobos each shot four times.
The Lady Lancers start Crossroads League play next week. Grace is at Huntington on Wednesday to begin conference play. The Lady Lancers won a share of the league title in 2018 for the first time in program history.
Rozas Wins ITA Regionals
WINONA LAKE – Max Rozas continued his dream season for Grace’s men’s tennis team at the ITA Regional Tournament this weekend.
Rozas claimed the championship for the singles’ bracket to advance to ITA Nationals. The national tournament will be held in Newport Beach, Calif., starting Nov. 6.
Rozas is just the second Lancer to compete at ITA Nationals, joining Danila Kurkulin who also won the regional singles’ tournament in 2016.
Incredibly, Rozas never dropped a set throughout the 64-person tournament. Rozas, the No. 3 seed in the field, coasted through the first two rounds on Thursday and then won again twice in straight sets on Friday.
In the semifinals on Saturday morning, Rozas beat Indiana Wesleyan’s ace Martin Carrizo 6-4, 6-3.
In the finals, Rozas was pitted against UNOH’s Marcos Salazar. The sophomore continued his efficient play with a 6-3, 6-0 victory to claim the crown.
Grace Men’s Soccer Wins Fifth Straight
HOWELL, Mich. - Grace’s men’s soccer team wrapped up the nonconference season in style, beating Cleary 4-2 on the road Saturday.
The Lancers (6-1-1) stretched their winning streak to five games; Grace’s offense has been electric during that streak, producing 20 goals during the five-game winning streak.
Saturday’s match was even for the first 65 minutes. Each team scored once in the opening half.
Grace scored at the beginning to take an early advantage. Jonny Mora sent in a corner kick in the sixth minute, and Ivan Santagiuliana netted on the play.
The Cougars (2-2) managed to equalize in the 37th minute, sending the game into halftime with a 1-1 deadlock.
Cleary was credited with a 9-3 edge in shots, but Grace’s offense was just warming up.
After 20 minutes of play in the second half, the game was still tied. But over the next 12 minutes, Grace wrapped up the victory.
At the 66:22 mark, Ze Maria Goncalves assisted Marcelo Talamas for the go-ahead goal.
Ulisses Miranda and Felipe Gruber’s connection provided the rest. Miranda netted in the 73rd minute after an assist by Gruber. Miranda returned the favor by assisting Gruber at the 78:30 mark for a 4-1 lead.
The Cougars tried to keep pressure on the Lancers with their second goal in the 85th minute, but Grace’s defense stood firm for the final minutes.
Talamas tried three shots to lead Grace, and Gruber had two shots on goal.
The Lancers return home next week to kick off the Crossroads League season. Grace’s league opener is a crucial one, hosting Huntington on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Foresters are currently receiving votes in the NAIA.
Lancer VB’s Streak Snapped By USF
WINONA LAKE – A four-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday for Grace’s volleyball team.
The Lady Lancers lost 3-0 to St. Francis, who is receiving votes in the NAIA and currently second in the Crossroads League.
The Cougars (14-5, 6-1 CL) could not be slowed on offense, picking up 11 more kills than the Lady Lancers (8-10, 4-3 CL) at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.
The first set was evenly played, but unforced errors by Grace lost the set. The Cougars held a slight lead for much of the game and led 24-21. But Grace rallied with a kill by Makaela Lochmueller and a block point to make the score 24-23.
USF’s attack was headed out of bounds on the next rally, but the Cougars were saved by a blocking error from the Lady Lancers to secure the set 25-23. The Lady Lancers had eight attack errors which helped to nullify their 14 kills.
Grace could not slow down USF’s offense in the second set. The Cougars erupted for 19 kills at a .586 percentage, easing away to a 25-20 victory.
For the first time in the match, Grace started out strongly in the third set. Grace jumped out to a 7-0 lead to force an early timeout by USF. Gabbey Harrington and Corynne Aelker both had two kills, and Lochmueller added three block assists.
But the Cougars showed poise to battle back. USF managed to tie the score 9-9 to erase Grace’s strong start.
The momentum continued for USF as the Cougars rolled to another five-point win to cement the sweep.
Harrington led all players with 12 kills on a .320 percentage, and Lochmueller added six kills and six block assists.
Alexa Hill tallied 28 assists, 8 digs and 3 kills, Emily Sharp had 10 digs, and Aelker added five kills and five digs.
The Lady Lancers are on the road this week, playing at Huntington on Friday night.
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