Marion, Ind. – The Marian women's soccer team rallied late after trailing by two goals with just over 40 minutes left but came up short in a 3-2 loss to No. 2 seed Indiana Wesleyan in the Crossroads League Tournament semifinals on Wednesday.

In a contest that saw plenty of offensive action, the Wildcats were the ones to strike first. Noelle Rolfsen made an early save, but Jackie Norris struck a shot that snuck by Rolfsen and into the lower corner of the net in the 13th minute. Marian answered right back with the Knights scoring on a terrific opportunity. Maya Decker sent a cross right into the center of the box, and Gretchen Mallin's strike found the back of the net to tie things up at 1-1 in the 14th minute. Marian stayed on the offensive, earning two corner kicks with a shot by Erin Oleksak over the next 10 minutes but without anything to show for it.

Indiana Wesleyan responded in the closing moments of the half with two shots on goal late. Rolfsen made the saves, keeping things tied up after 45 minutes. Marian had just one shot on goal to Indiana Wesleyan's four. Both teams ended the half with two corner kicks.

The Wildcats came out of halftime as the aggressors with two shots right away. Those opportunities resulted in an Indiana Wesleyan corner kick and a goal, as Jackie Norris' header sailed over Rolfsen to make it 2-1 Wildcats in the 49th minute. Jacelyn Smith answered for Marian with two shots of her own over the next couple of minutes but without result. On a counterattack, Indiana Wesleyan's Sarah Foulk found the back of the net with her shot sneaking through which extended the Wildcats' lead to two goals with just under 30 minutes left.

Marian bounced back to create several opportunities in the closing minutes. Following a corner kick, Delaney Taylor hit a header into the box. Smith then scored from Taylor on her header attempt to get Marian within a goal in the 71st minute, trailing 3-2. Indiana Wesleyan played defensive and tried to run off as much clock as possible. The Knights managed to get two shots late, but Mallin's shot in the 87th minute went high, and Miranda Nosko's header went just left of the net in the 89th minute, as the Wildcats held onto a one-goal victory.

The Knights outshot the Wildcats 12-11, but Indiana Wesleyan recorded three more shots on goal than the Knights. Both teams finished the contest with four corner kicks. Mallin's goal was her second of the season, while Smith's score was her ninth. Smith also led Marian with four shots of the team's 12. Oleksak took three shots, while Mallin also tallied two shots. Nosko, Decker, and Allie Schlom each managed one shot. Rolfsen took the loss while making five saves over 90 minutes for the Knights.

With the loss, Marian falls to 15-4-1 on the season. The Knights will eye an at-large bid in the NAIA Tournament after maintaining a rank at No. 8 in the women's soccer coaches poll earlier today. Marian will also host also the opening round of the tournament on November 18 and 20. The field will be announced on Monday, November 15 at 11 AM on the NAIA's Facebook page.