WAUKESHA, Wis. - The Carroll University women's soccer team surrendered an early goal and struggled to recover as it lost to defending league champion Illinois Wesleyan 1-0 in a nail-biting College Conference of Illinois-Wisconsin game at Schneider Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
It was a battle between two of the league's top-tier programs and rematch of last year's CCIW Tournament semifinal.
Carroll, which dropped to 1-1 in the conference standings and 8-3 overall, lost at home for only the second time this season.
Freshman defender/midfielder Megan O' Neal scored what proved to be the winning goal off an assist from freshman forward/midfielder Cameron Hindel at the 8:12 mark for Illinois Wesleyan, which won its conference opener and third straight to improve to 8-2 overall.
The Titans, who advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament last year and received votes in the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll while hovering just out of the top 25, outshot Carroll 8-5 in the contest - maintaining a key 6-3 shot-on-goal advantage.
Junior forward/midfielder Delaney Pruitt (Ringwood, Ill.) generated three shots, including a shot-on-goal opportunity for the Pioneers, who had just two corner kicks in the contest. Junior midfielder Jensen Meyer (Germantown, Wis.) and sophomore defender Lisa Harwardt (Lake Zurich, Ill.)  each added a shot-on-goal .
Sophomore goalkeeper Christina O' Block (Libertyville, Ill.) registered five saves in playing the entire 90 minutes.