Box Score SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — The Dominican University of California women's soccer team ended its season on Sunday with a disappointing 2-1 loss to Notre Dame de Namur University that was frustrating in more ways than one.

Not only did the defeat come at the hands of their Pacific West Conference rival, NDNU (7-7-4/6-2-4), which beat the Lady Penguins 4-1 on Oct. 18, but it was the seventh one-goal loss by Dominican (3-14-1/1-10-1) this year, representing half of their loss total.

“It wasn't that we didn't give ourselves opportunities to win games. We gave ourselves an opportunity to win today,” said Dominican Director of Soccer Jon Delano. “I thought we were very good in the first half but not as sharp in the second half and the momentum turned.”

The Argonauts outshot the Lady Penguins 11-3 after intermission. They netted the game-winner with 4:58 remaining when Margo Rasteiro scored off a rebound following a corner kick. Rasteiro was denied a goal six minutes earlier when her shot was cleared in the goal mouth by freshman defender Megan Hanson.

Dominican's best chances to tie the game came off shots by Emily Whitaker and Kaitlynn Baptista that were blocked in the box then, in the final minute, a Julianna Bratsberg header was rolling toward the goal but NDNU goalkeeper Kelsey Baxter chased it down before it crossed the goal line.

The Lady Penguins scored first with a beautiful goal eight and a half minutes into the game. Senior Katie Brown, playing in her final game for Dominican, recorded the 26th assist of her career when her long side throw-in was headed by Bratsberg by the near post toward teammate Tori Selesia near the far post, who headed the ball into the net for her team-leading fourth goal of the season.

It also was Dominican' seventh goal in its last four games after scoring only four goals in first seven games, including five shutouts.
The Argonauts tied the game three and a half minutes following Selesia's goal on a goal by senior Sarah Riser and Dominican goalkeeper Megan Herring prevented them from taking the lead a few minutes later when she leaped and deflected a shot by junior Alexis Tershay over the crossbar.

Baxter was tested by the Lady Penguins in the first half. She scurried out of the net twice to smother scoring chances by Sara Pimentel and Baptista.

At half, the upset-minded Lady Penguins looked in good shape to possibly deal NDNU its first loss since Oct. 15 and give Brown a farewell present in her last game.

“I thought Katie was great today,” said Delano. “I think she's been injured for every game all four years but she's never complained. Just the grit and determination and the heart she plays with, you can't quantify how important that is to the team.”

Prior to the game, Brown from San Diego and Shayna Elkins from Santa Rosa were honored on Senior Day at Forest Meadows Field. They received framed jerseys from their senior season from the Dominican coaching staff.

Brown, who scored her first goal of the season on Friday at Academy of Art, finished her Dominican career with five goals. A Business Administration major, she was Dominican's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year last season.

Elkins, who was unable to play on Senior Day because she was serving an accumulative fifth yellow card infraction incurred on Friday, had eight goals in her four-year career with the Lady Penguins. She was a three-year team captain who started 70 of 71 games as a Lady Penguin.

Without Elkins and freshman Kendra Corsberg, who sat out the game with a red card infraction, the Lady Penguins struggled in the midfield on Sunday. But, with eight underclassmen in the starting lineup against the Argos, Dominican is encouraged by next season.

“When you go through tough times, you've got to take the good with the bad,” said Delano. “I've got a good nucleus coming back and they'll be some additions to the group with recruiting but if they can take what they learned this year, it could be pretty special next year.”