WALLA WALLA, Wash. – The Whitman College women's soccer team lost a close game Saturday afternoon to Pacific Lutheran University at the Whitman Athletic Fields in Walla Walla. The Missionaries played with great energy throughout the afternoon, but came up just short against the Lutes in the 1-0 Northwest Conference matchup.
 
Whitman (1-8-1, 1-4-1 NWC) put itself in a good position early keeping the ball on the attack and firing six shots, three on goal, in the first 17 minutes of play. Pacific Lutheran (7-1-1, 3-1-1 NWC) goalie, Takara Mitsui was good early, collecting saves on each of Whitman's shots as the game remained scoreless.
 
The Lutes gained three corners in the latter part of the half, but Whitman's defense held strong, clearing each corner before it reached goalkeeper, Haley Case. The Missionaries' defense shone during the final twenty minutes of the half as PLU took four shots, two of which were on goal, but Case prevented the Lutes from scoring as the game entered the break, tied at 0-0.
 
The second half started with solid defenses from both teams. PLU had an early shot that missed off the post, but Whitman's Brianna Brown answered and nearly gave the Missionaries the lead in the 55th minute. Over the next 12 minutes Linnea Soo, whose shot was saved by Mitsui, and Kathleen Daly-Jensen, who missed high, both had good looks at giving Whitman the lead.
 
In the 69th minute, Pacific Lutheran's Taylor Lunde connected with the left-post and the ball ricocheted into the goal, giving the Lutes a 1-0 advantage. Whitman's best chance to equalize came in the 87th when PLU's Megan Anderson was given a yellow card, which set-up a Whitman shot from just outside the box. Unfortunately, the shot was saved by Mitsui and the Lutes held on for a 1-0 victory.
 
Whitman will play tomorrow against the University of Puget Sound, the game is set to begin at 12:00 p.m. at the Whitman Athletic Fields.