ABILENE – Abilene Christian (2-4-6) dropped a 2-1 decision to defending WAC champions Grand Canyon (8-4-1) on Thursday in their second game of WAC play.
Grand Canyon took the lead in the 37th minute with a shot by Grace Bartlett. ACU had four shots on the half split between Chayse Thorn and Peyton Hill.
In the 63rd minute, GCU extended their lead with a shot by Alex Sampson and assists from Hannah Smith and AJ Loera. The Wildcats had a quick response in the 67th minute with a goal from Amelia Miller and an assist from Georgia Gunther to shorten the score gap to 2-1.
ACU had a total of 11 shots on the night, placing five on frame and Lili Ross had six saves.
"We knew this game was going to be tough on the road to the defending conference champions and made adjustments within the game plan that made us more threatening," Stephen Salas, ACU head coach, said.
The Wildcats fought to find the equalizer in the second half, but GCU goalkeeper DeAira Jackson made big saves to secure their win.
"Our fight together as a team was evident. We pulled within one on Georgia's corner to a beautiful goal from Amelia Miller, the first of her career as a freshman… We need to tighten down on our discipline of set pieces and fouls given up. We are looking forward to responding against CBU Sunday night."
The Wildcats continue their journey on the road to California Baptist on Oct. 6. Game time is at 8 p.m. CT and will be streamed on ESPN+. Live Stats will also be available for the game.
