WATERTOWN, Wis. -- The Sabercats ended the regular season with a 1-1 draw against Faith today.

Mallory Willette scored the lone Sabercat goal and Esther Bishop was the crucial defensive piece to keeping the Eagles' offense at bay.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 1-1 Faith (2OT)
• Venue: Maranatha Baptist University
• Location: Watertown, Wis.
• Attendance: 30
• Record: MBU (3-9-3), FBBC (2-7-2)

STORY

Coming off back-to-back wins last week, the Sabercats concluded the regular season with a draw against the North region's number one team - the Faith Eagles. Despite facing a better team, Maranatha stood strong and battled from the opening kickoff. They had several chances early as Kseniya Hassenplug and Mallory Willette each took shots early on, but the Faith keeper, Lexi LeFleur, kept the offense at bay.

That all changed in the 25th minute when Jillian Brown was fouled in the Faith box. Willette was tabbed to take the penalty kick, and she launch a powerful shot to the right of LaFleur which bounced off her gloves and buried itself into the back corner of the net, giving Maranatha a 1-0 lead. The defense would hold that lead until halftime, as Angel Steuerwald made several strong takeaways and Esther Bishop sacrificed her body to make multiple saves throughout the day.

Just a few minutes after the half, Faith evened the score off a corner kick play that allowed them to gain full control of the ball after the kick came in. Lydia Trygstad gained possession amidst a group of Eagles and Sabercat defenders and was able to find the back of the net, changing the entire outlook of the game.

The Sabercat defense did not let up, however. They continued to fight for another 50 minutes, holding the Eagle offense for the rest of the half and two overtimes. Faith had several chances to score, yet came up short every time. Bishop was key in stopping the Eagles as she placed herself in positions to impact the play each possession, limiting Faith's ability to keep the ball in the box. After 110 minutes of soccer, the regular season ended with a 1-1 draw. The two teams will hope to duke it out once more at the regional tournament next week.

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MBU Starters: 1- L. Brown, 2- Willette, 5- Willette, 6- Warner, 8- Bishop, 11- Torres, 12- Moore (C), 16- Vander Pluym, 19- Steuerwald (C), 20- Hassenplug, 22- J. Brown

STATS

• Shots: Maranatha 7-12 Faith
• Shots on Goal: Maranatha 5-7 Faith
• Mallory Willette: 1 goal
• Laura Brown: 6 saves
• Last time: Faith defeated Maranatha 1-0 on September 25
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Faith 9-3-1

OPPONENTS

• Faith competes in the Midwest Christian College Conference and in the North Region of the NCCAA DII
• Faith has now completed their regular season and will prepare for the North Region tournament next week, which they will play on their home turf.

NEXT

The Sabercats have concluded the regular season and await the bidding for the regional tournament at Faith. Follow along at mbusabercats.com/schedule.