Buffalo, NY - The D'Youville Women's Soccer Team lost its first conference game of the season on Saturday afternoon at the feet of the guest team Penn St.-Altoona by the score of 1-0.

The first half saw no goals for either side, despite several chances for each team. In the second half, only one goal was scored. Just under 3 minutes in, Penn St.-Altoona took the lead on a broken play in the box.

As the second half went on, the D'Youville pressure increased in an attempt to even the score. However, the Lions goalkeeper made several big saves to keep the Spartans out of their net, including a breakaway attempt.

Junior goalkeeper Catie Giebner (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township) made 10 saves on 11 shots. Sophomores Rachel Hermanski (Buffalo, NY/Maryvale) and Emily Carias (Eden, NY/Eden) let the way in shots for D'Youville with 3 each. The Spartans had 12 shots on goal.

Saturday's loss was the first home loss for D'Youville this season, and their first ever loss on their new home field. In their 7 home games this season, the women have outscored their opponents 13-2. Only one home game remains for the Spartans when they play Penn St.-Behrend on Wednesday, October 22nd at 5pm. 

D'Youville's defense made up of senior captain Mallory Hojnacki (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg) junior captain Amanda Drake (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) and freshman Jenna Tomizzi (Buffalo, NY/Sacred Heart) have been a big reason as to why the Spartans have been so successful at home. The trio started every game this season and been the backbone of the strong conference play start.

The next game for the D'Youville Women's Soccer Team is Tuesday, October 14th at Pitt.-Greensburg. The game begins at 1pm.