GOSHEN, Ind. — Katie Baer made 14 saves, coming within one of her career high, Wednesday night as the Goshen College women's soccer team became the final Maple Leaf side to open its 2020 fall season against Indiana Wesleyan University. The Wildcats, who finished the 2019 season as the no. 7 team in the NAIA, won 3-0 at the John Ingold Athletic Complex.

Indiana Wesleyan, one of three nationally-rated teams that Goshen will play twice this season in the Roads Division of the Crossroads League, put its first shot on target in the third minute and broke the ice in the seventh on a Lauren Turner shot. They doubled the lead with 16:26 gone on a Sydney Brown goal.

The Wildcats (3-0-1, 2-0-1) had a 16-1 edge in first-half shots, with Yesenia Cervantes Becerra leading the offense for Goshen, but were limited to two corner kicks in the first half and five for the match. IWU used 12 substitutes while the Maple Leafs played 13 players.

Litzy Corona took a pair of shots in the second half for Goshen (0-1, 0-1). The Wildcats extended their lead to 3-0 in the 54th minute on Brown's second goal of the game, a run up the left side from Kenzie Millar.

"Obviously we can't be excited about a 3-0 loss, but I thought everyone that played tonight gave a good account for themselves," said head coach Justin Crew. "When we came out shorthanded and conceded twice in the early going, we could have turned negative and settled in for a long night. Instead we put forth a good effort for 90 minutes in a challenging situation."

The match marked the latest of Goshen's 30 season openers by calendar date due to the coronavirus pandemic; GC's previous record for a late start was Sept. 14 in its inaugural 1991 season.

Goshen hits the road for the first time on Saturday, when they travel to Spring Arbor, Michigan, to play a Spring Arbor University team that finished 9-5-6 a season ago. Kickoff in the Roads Division match is set for 7 p.m. at the Cougar Soccer Complex.