After dropping their first contest of the MIAA season, Saint Mary's looks to bounce back when it takes on Trine at home Saturday.
In the first match of their conference schedule, the Belles (3-7-1) lost a tough match against Adrian College, 3-0.
Saint Mary's gave up three first-half goals before holding the Bulldogs scoreless in the second half.
"I was greatly disappointed with the result of Wednesday's game," coach Ryan Crabbe said. "I had much higher expectations heading into the first conference match. Because of the strong non-conference schedule we have already played, I felt we were more than prepared. In the second half, we simply played well enough not to give up another goal. We never really threatened to score a goal of our own."
The problem for the Belles this season, which reared its ugly head again against Adrian, has been capitalizing on their chances and keeping other teams off the scoreboard in the first half.
"[We can't] fall behind early in matches," Crabbe said. "We need to learn how to play from the front, meaning being the stronger team and imposing our game plan on our opponent. [We have to] make changes moving forward."
Trine (0-10) is having an even rougher season than the Belles. The winless Thunder have been outscored 47-7 this season. But Crabbe is not as concerned with the opponent as he is with his own team's progress.
"At this point, I am less concerned about who is next and more concerned about how we prepare," he said. We need to find players willing to work hard and not make excuses. Our only goal is to get [a win] on Saturday so that we can get back into the race for one of the six spots that qualify for the conference tournament."
Last season the Belles had little trouble with the Thunder winning 4-0 at home.
After Trine, Saint Mary's will play three consecutive home games, two against MIAA opponents.
Saturday's game against Trine will kick off at 10 a.m.
