COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce soccer team showed toughness in battling Dallas Baptist University, the No. 1 team in the nation, but a late Patriot goal handed the Lions a 1-0 defeat.
 
The Lions are 2-2-0 in the regular season and in Lone Star Conference play, while DBU is now 9-0-1 overall and 4-0-1 in the LSC.
 
The Lions have one more regular season match remaining, playing at Midwestern State in the regular season finale on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
 
NOTES
- The Lions celebrated the careers of seniors Katie Givens (Rockwall), Izzy Ward (McKinney – Boyd), and Madison Zick (Arlington) prior to the game.
- Goalkeeper Jen Peters (Allen) was fantastic all game, making six saves, with some at very close range.
- Cora Welch (Plano Senior) led the Lions with four shots in the game.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lion defense was able to bother a DBU attack which pushed all night, and the home side was able to launch numerous counterattacks. Shots by Lauren Shaw (Livingston – The Covenant Prep), Naomi Sink (Plano – East), Rylie Robertson (Rockwall), and Givens were narrowly wide in a scoreless first half.
 
Peters made four saves in the first half, which saw DBU carry a 12-5 shots advantage.
 
A&M-Commerce was able to send more pressure on offense for a 10-minute period soon after the start of the second half. Leslie Campuzano (Garland – Lakeview Centennial) was close on a pair of shots and Welch was saved in the 57^th minute
 
The defense was saved by the crossbar in the 63^rd minute, and a defender clear a ball off the line in the 70th minute. Eventually, though the DBU pressure gave the guests a goal, as Ashley Merrill put a goal into the bottom right corner in the 83^rd minute. With little time to respond, the Lions managed one shot late, but that effort went high, and DBU escaped with a win.