WAUKESHA, Wis. - As the Carroll University men's soccer team slowly walked off the field, it could only wonder what might have been had it saved a little extra for an extremely rainy day.
Carroll lost to Lake Forest College 2-0 in a rain-soaked nonconference game at Schneider Stadium on Wednesday night.
It was the third consecutive home-field shutout loss of the early season for Carroll, which dropped to 0-3 overall.
Lake Forest, which improved to 3-0 overall, collected what became the winning goal as freshman forward/midfielder Erik Truitt scored off an assist from freshman defender Connor Keast at the 42:10 mark.
The Foresters added their final goal as junior forward Lucas Geib scored on an assist from senior midfielder Sal Gloria in the 69th minute.
Senior goalkeeper Tero Elias, who played the entire 90 minutes, registered two critical saves to preserve a shutout.
Senior defender Chad Peterson (Mukwonago, Wis.) and freshman forward Jack Kiiskila (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.) each had a shot on goal for Carroll, which was outshot 10-8 in the contest - including a key 6-2 shot-on-goal margin.
It was a frustrating performance for the young, scrappy Pioneers, who showed flashes of their potential but struggled to finish on six corner kicks over the course of the second half.
"We lacked discipline tonight," Carroll first-year head coach Derek Marie said. "When that happened, it led to a lot of mental errors and ultimately another frustrating loss. That's the main reason we currently have an 0-3 record. Lake Forest is a quality opponent but we also showed that we have the ability to compete with them and generate a lot of opportunities. Unfortunately, we weren't able to put one in the back of the net to build some momentum.
"The guys care about their performance on the field but that's simply not going to win games. We just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other, deliver a disciplined effort each time we step on the field and do our best to figure it out. This type of matchup will only help in our preparation for the CCIW (College Conference of Illinois-Wisconsin). As in the game of life, if you get knocked down it's just a matter of learning from the experience and getting back up. We're a young team and need to continue moving forward."
Sophomore midfielder Carlos Guzman (Chicago, Ill.) and sophomore defender Patrick Hefferan (Stevens Point, Wis.) each generated two shots for Carroll. Junior defender Issey Valadez (Milwaukee, Wis.) and junior forward Shea Connell (Alicante, Spain) each added a shot.
Juniors Mathias Holm (Marshfield, Wis.) and Connor Thompson (Kent, Wash.) each played a half at goalkeeper for the Pioneers, combining for four saves.