No. 24 Grace remains perfect, tops Pioneers

By Press release submission

Sep 10, 2022

Grace's women's soccer team continued its hot start to the season with a 2-0 win over Point Park on Monday.

The No. 24 Lady Lancers (4-0) used goals from JJ Aalbue and Danae Moriarty to remain undefeated.

Through its first four matches, Grace has now outscored its opponents by an incredible 23-0 margin to begin the 2022 campaign.

Grace had clear possession throughout the majority of the first half. The Lady Lancers were sharp with their passing to begin the half, keeping PPU pinned back defensively.

Kailey Burrell gave the Pioneers fits in the opening minutes and was a constant threat on the left side of the field.

She generated Grace's first goal in the ninth minute of play. Burrell beat two defenders on the left side and passed ahead to Marlene Menzel. Menzel laid off a pass to JJ Aalbue, and Aalbue sliced a low, left-footed shot past the goalkeeper.

Aalbue and Burrell had more chances as the half continued, as did Lea Moessinger and Lucy Schmitt.

Point Park had a few chances as the half progressed, but the Pioneers were unable to produce a hard shot at Grace's goal.

Grace responded almost immediately after PPU's pressure. Moessinger picked out Danae Moriarty who was charging at the Pioneers' goal. Moriarty curled a shot beyond the reach of PPU's goalkeeper to double Grace's lead.

The half ended with Grace ahead 2-0. Eleven shots were attempted in the opening half with Grace owning seven.

While the second half had no more goals scored, the Lady Lancers still had several strong chances.

Madison Tuma came the closest; her sliding shot in the later stages of the match hit the crossbar.

Grace fired off eight shots during the second half, including attempts by Menzel, Aalbue, Sam Vondersaar and Luisa Machado.

Point Park was held without a shot attempt after halftime and had just four attempts overall.

Libby Stratton and Sofia Lerro combined for the shutout in goal for Grace. Amber Meade, Schmitt, Simone Castaneda, Luna Gianotti, Lilli Oberhoff and Kimberly Aalbue all contributed on the defensive end.

The Lady Lancers will put their ranking to the test to close the week. Grace will travel to No. 20 Southeastern on Saturday for a Top-25 showdown at 3 p.m.

Grace is beginning a four-game road trip. Grace's next home match will be Sept. 28 against St. Francis.