GALESBURG, Ill. ­— After entering halftime with a scoreless tie, the Knox College women's soccer team was nipped by visiting Elmhurst University on Tuesday afternoon at Jorge Prats Field, 1-0. The Prairie Fire (0-5) got 10 saves between their two goalkeepers, but a shot by Ellie Muscarello slipped past in the 52nd minute to lift the Blue Jays (3-2-2) to victory.

First-year Darby Wallig turned away six shots during the opening 45 minutes, while her counterpart, Erin Fitzharris, stopped shots on goal by senior Aleene Ramirez and sophomore Vero Hernandez. But early in the second stanza, Katelyn Guolla delivered a cross in front of the Prairie Fire goal that Muscarello was able to put away.

Knox had one more good scoring opportunity, but Fitzharris came out to smother a shot by first-year Asia Ling in the 67th minute. Then with just under 13 minutes top lay, junior Isabella Shubert booted a long shot from outside the box that eluded a diving Fitzharris, but the ball just slipped past the left post.

• Elmhurst kept the pressure on the Prairie Fire all game, firing off 24 shots compared to four for Knox.
• The one goal was the lowest output for a Knox opponent since the final game of the 2023 season.

The Prairie Fire will celebrate Senior Day for their next outing on Saturday at 11 a.m. against Eureka College at Jorge Prats Field. Fifth-year Alex Halleck along with the two members in the senior class (Ramirez and Sara Mirani) will be honored prior to the contest. The game will be streamed live with stats available through the official website of Knox athletics, PrairieFire.Knox.edu.