WINONA LAKE, Ind. -- Despite facing a 21-9 shot disadvantage, senior midfielder Casey O'Brien netted a late second-half tally to pull the No. 22 Golden Eagles (1-0-1) to a 1-1 draw against Grace (Ind.) tonight in the finale of the Grace Invitational.
Junior netminder Kristen Morency (1-0-1) had to turn aside six Lancer shots, including four in the first half alone. Grace enjoyed a 9-2 shooting advantage in the first stanza and continue the increase its margin against JBU in the second half, finishing regulation with a 17-5 advantage.
Grace (1-1-1) took a 1-0 lead in the 53rd minute when Heather Martin sent a free kick into the penalty box, and Carianne Sobey's headed pass found Rondeau for a sliding finish in front of the net.
With the game drawing to a close, the Golden Eagles pressured and finally found the back of the net. With the ball loose in the Lancer box, sophomore Sara Lachance collected her second assist in as many games and found senior midfielder Casey O'Brien, who buried the goal in the 80th minute.
Grace appeared poised to finish its upset bid in the 84th minute when Meghan Wiles ripped a shot on goal, but Morency made her finest save of the evening to preserve the even score.
Both teams were able to fire four shots in the extra session, including clanking a pair of shots off the crossbar. In the 103 minute, junior defender Julie Whitlow rang a free kick off the iron, just before Grace's Wiles returned the favor as the ball bounced straight down, dangerously close to crossing the goal line.
The match ended with Grace taking 11 more shot attempts and seven more corner kicks (7-0) than JBU. Lachance fired a match-high six shots for the Golden Eagles.
John Brown will return to the pitch on Saturday (Sept. 6) in Olathe, Kan., when JBU takes on MidAmerica Nazarene at 12:30 p.m.
