Grace College RoundupWINONA LAKE – On a special night for Grace College’s women’s soccer team, the Lady Lancers pummeled Hannibal-LaGrange 9-0 on Saturday.
Eight players scored a goal for Grace, including two from Flavia Faria and the game winner from Emma Neahusan.
Grace’s players, in their new white and black home uniforms, also wore purple accents in their attire for the match. Purple, which is the symbolic color of pancreatic cancer, signified support of Neahusan who lost her mother Rhonda to pancreatic cancer earlier this year.
The packed crowd at 1st Source Bank Field gave Neahusan an electrified applause when she scored the game-winning goal in the 15th minute. Faria picked out Neahusan at the top of the 18-yard box, and Neahusan curled her shot into the top-left corner of the net.
Less than four minutes later, Faria doubled Grace’s lead. Faria, who had another goal disallowed shortly before due to offsides, finished off a nifty play in the box to beat a defender and slice her shot past the goalkeeper.
Grace scored two more goals before halftime. Kristen Bellinger made a perfect leading pass to Liz Van Wormer, and Van Wormer finished her shot around the charging goalkeeper in the 25th minute.
Autumn Raulerson tacked on her first collegiate goal six minutes before halftime after an assist from Clair Snodgrass.
Grace went into halftime with a 4-0 lead, taking 31 shots while holding the Trojans (0-1) to zero attempts.
Two minutes into the half, Faria scored her second goal of the contest which Van Wormer assisted.
Shortly afterward, Corinne Villalobos got on the scoresheet when she finished a connecting pass in the box from Bellinger in the 50th minute.
In the 63rd minute, Snodgrass earned her first collegiate goal after scrapping her way past the defense and squeezing in a goal from a tight angle.
At the 71:23 mark, Jenni Phillips added the first goal of her Lady Lancer career, and Shelby Fort finished off the game’s scoring after a crafty assist by Liz Aalbue.
“The women put in two good training days, and as expected made very good adjustments. This group consistently works to be more intelligent and has a deep hunger to learn,” said Grace head coach Michael Voss. “The biggest difference tonight was that their joy was evident. They improved their quality of shot selection and maintained high tempo for movement. The finishing produced was a direct result. Something unlocked in them this evening. They worked as a team and are becoming more fluid.”
Faria finished with two goals and an assist, and Van Wormer, Raulerson and Snodgrass each had one goal and one assist. Bellinger had two of Grace’s nine assists on the evening.
The Lady Lancers embark for the West Coast next week to play a pair of matches in California against No. 21 Kansas Wesleyan and No. 19 Embry-Riddle.
MEN’S SOCCER
BLUEFIELD, W.V. - Grace’s men’s soccer team produced five goals in a rout of John Wesley on Sunday.
The Lancers (1-1) used a hat trick from freshman Ulisses Miranda to blow by John Wesley 5-0.
Grace’s offense showcased a lethal edge in the match. The Lancers needed only nine shots to produce their five goals. Only one of Grace’s shots on goal was denied by the goalkeeper.
It did not take long for Grace to find its first goal of the season. Miranda found the back of the net in the 18th minute, finishing his shot into the right side of the net.
At the 24:50 mark, Santiago Maya doubled Grace’s advantage. He received a pass from Togo Narusawa and blasted his shot in the upper-left corner.
Just six minutes later, Miranda found his second goal. The freshman maneuvered by his defender and slotted in a goal to the far post.
Grace was not done scoring in the half. With just seconds remaining before halftime, Damon Binkley added the Lancers’ fourth goal of the half.
The Lions (0-2) mustered just two shots against Grace’s defense, only one of which needed to be saved by Kurt Hamlin.
In the 68th minute, Miranda put the finishing touches on his hat trick. The Brazilian calmly beat the goalkeeper in a 1-on-1 situation to wrap up the scoring for the day.
For the match, Grace outshot John Wesley 9-6. The Lions were held to one corner as well.
Hamlin earned the shutout by making four saves in 90 minutes.
The Lancers continue play on Monday, taking on Salem International. On Wednesday, Grace returns home for a match against Trinity International at 7 p.m. at 1st Source Bank Field.
VOLLEYBALL
WINONA LAKE – Grace’s volleyball team wrapped up the competitive Lancer Classic on Saturday with two matches.
The Lady Lancers (5-3) ended the day on a positive note, taking down Indiana Tech 3-1 at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.
The first match of the morning saw Grace fall in a nailbiter. The Lady Lancers nearly recovered from a 2-1 deficit to win in a fifth set, ultimately falling 3-2 to Northwestern Ohio (UNOH).
In the final match of the Lancer Classic, Grace’s balanced offense proved too much for Indiana Tech.
Grace’s offense was sizzling from the start, jumping out to a 15-5 advantage. The Lady Lancers pounded out 14 kills on just one error to win 25-17. Lexy Oppenhuis led all players in the set with five kills, including the game-clinching swing.
The Warriors (2-2) used an early 6-0 run to seize momentum in the second set, cruising to an eight-point win to even the match.
But Grace ended the match with two straight 25-20 victories to down the Warriors.
Kelsee Zuidema led all players with 16 kills to go along with 7 digs, 3 aces and 3 block assists, and Oppenhuis had 10 kills on just 15 attempts.
Sara Miller amassed 19 digs, while Alex Hill had a double-double of 41 assists and 10 digs.
Grace started the day sluggishly after playing the late match the night before. The Lady Lancers trailed 9-3 after the first serve and never recovered in a 25-17 defeat.
In the second set, Grace recovered from another early deficit to win 25-19, ending the set on a kill from Savannah Hart.
UNOH put Grace on the ropes with a decisive 25-18 win in the third, but Grace still had fight remaining.
The Lady Lancers forced a tiebreaker set with a 25-22 victory in the fourth as a block assist from Kari Feddema and Marta Bleed ended the scoring.
In the fifth, UNOH raced out to a 10-3 lead which forced Grace coach Katie Van Hofwegen to call timeout. Her strategy worked as Grace exploded on an 8-1 run to tie the game at 11-11.
The Racers looked to end the match with a 14-13 lead. But the Lady Lancers fended off two match points, including a timely kill from Zuidema, to take the contest into extra points.
Grace was never able to climb into the lead, however, and fell 17-15 to finish the match.
Zuidema led Grace’s attack with 19 kills on a .315 percentage, adding five digs and four block assists. Zuidema, Hart and Feddema all had four block assists, and Hart added two solo blocks as well.
Miller produced 28 digs, and Caylie Teel added 16 digs and three kills. Hill handed out 46 assists, and Sierra Smith tacked on eight kills.
The Lady Lancers begin Crossroads League action next week, hosting Taylor on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
