Franklin women's soccer still very much controls its HCAC Tournament fate, with three upcoming matches against teams in the bottom half of the league standings.
On Wednesday, though, the Grizzlies were on the road at Rose-Hulman attempting to steal a game from one of the teams up top, and a couple of first-half goals by the Engineers dented the Franklin upset hopes in a 2-0 loss.
The visiting Griz (3-9-1, 1-4 HCAC) fell behind just over eight minutes into the match, but they were able to battle back and give themselves a few chances at a tying goal.
Amirah Curry put a shot on frame in the 19th minute and
Hanna Maudlin followed with another late in the 28th minute. Franklin was unable to capitalize on those opportunities, though, and the Engineers took command with a second tally just 5:50 before the end of the half.
"We played really hard and matched their intensity," Griz coach
Jennifer Jackson said. "A couple of unfortunate mistakes led to goals in the first half, and then we held them in the second. Lots of things to take from the game and learn from going forward."
Indeed, the Grizzlies kept the margin at two the rest of the way and had a shot to get on the board in the 58th minute when
Alaina Kellerman fired one on target, but neither side was able to find the net in the final 45 minutes.
Starting goalkeeper
Emma Watson made eight saves for Franklin before exiting in the 81st minute for
Abi Medaugh, who stopped the two shots on goal that she faced.
The Grizzlies will be back at home on Saturday afternoon (1 p.m.) for a Senior Day match against Bluffton, one that will be critical to the team's hopes of advancing to the postseason.
