#12 Westmont Women’s Soccer (10-3-3) lost 2-1 to #10 Point Loma Nazarene (12-3-4) this afternoon in the semifinals of the NAIA Region II Tournament. The loss means that the Warriors hopes of winning the region and the automatic bid to the national tournament have come to an end.

However, the possibility of receiving one of six at-large invitations to the nationals is very much in play. Westmont must wait to see how the 13 NAIA regional tournaments across the nation pan out to know if a spot in the national tournament is made available to them. The last of the regionals conclude next Wednesday.

The Warriors struck first in today’s semifinals when a pass by Anna Gropp from the right side to the front of the goal was put in the net by Jessica Schoepke. The goal, which came in the 29th minute of play, almost stood up throughout the first half. But with just 28 seconds remaining before intermission, the Sea Lions scored as the result of a direct kick taken by Erin Mahoney from 35 yards out. Mahoney sent the ball to the front of the net where a scramble resulted in an own goal and a tie game.

Point Loma scored again in the 57th minute. A shot by Felice Chavez was stopped by Warrior keeper Ashley Werner, but the rebound found its way to Kristen Moore who buried it in the net.

The Sea Lions will travel to Azusa on Tuesday, where they will play Azusa Pacific in the NAIA Region II Championship game at 1:00 p.m.

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