COSTA MESA – The Vanguard women's soccer team engaged in a defensive struggle with The Master's on an overcast Saturday afternoon at VU Soccer Field. The teams settled for a scoreless tie as the Lions celebrated Jillian Juarez (SR/Glendora, CA), Madelyn Diaz (SR/San Clemente, CA), Payton Siurek (SR/Temecula, CA), Maddy Thompson (SR/Aliso Viejo, CA) and Madison Anderson (SR/Riverside, CA) on Senior Day.

The Lions outshot the Mustangs 9-6 and had six corner kicks to TMU's four.

Alyssa Fong (SO/Rescue, CA) led VU with three shots, all on goal, while Rachel Penick (FR/San Diego, CA) and Diaz had two apiece.

Mustang goalkeeper Autumn Jensen made six saves, while Lion counterpart Jordin Holmquist-Wilder (SO/Temecula, CA) needed to make only one stop. Both goalies picked up the shutout, with Holmquist-Wilder garnering her seventh clean sheet and lowering her season goals against average to 0.87.

Six different Mustangs had one shot.

VU moved to 6-2-4 overall and 4-1-2 in the Golden State Athletic Conference. With 10 points, the Lions sit in fourth place with one regular season game to go.

The top six teams in the standings qualify for the GSAC Tournament. The third and fourth seeds host first round tournament games. VU is currently the No. 4 seed.

The Mustangs are now 3-7-4 overall and 1-2-3 in conference play, tied for sixth with six points.

What Happened?: The Lions and Mustangs played a battle for possession throughout with much of the action taking place in the midfield.

The best scoring opportunity of the first half came when Lauren Park found open space in the 41st minute but her shot went high.

VU's activity increased in the latter stages of the second half. The Lions produced five corner kicks over a 10-minute stretch and five of their nine shots for the game occurred over the final eight minutes.

The Lions nearly landed the game-winner in the 86th minute facilitated by a corner kick. Fong pushed a quick pass to Penick, who worked her way along the endline and around a defender. She sent a hard cross to the far post, where Diaz had a great look but saw her header corralled by Jensen.

VU had two more shots but neither attempt found its target.

Why Is It Important?: The Lions are now 0-3-1 in their last four contests, but are still in great position to host a first round GSAC playoff game. They need either a tie or a win in the regular season finale, or an Arizona Christian tie or loss to clinch the hosting opportunity.

What Was Said?: "The Master's is always tough. It was a back-and-forth battle, but I felt we had a number of very good chances, with an especially exciting last 10-15 minutes – four corners and five shots, but we just couldn't find the back of the net," said Head Coach Lauren Mascaro. "Disappointing for sure. But the point keeps us in the hunt for playoffs and we still have some control over our own destiny leading into our game next week against HIU."

What's Next?: Vanguard takes on Hope International at the OC Great Park on Saturday, October 29 at 4:30 p.m.