Box Score COSTA MESA, Calif. --- Biola traveled to Costa Mesa on a Sunday Tuesday afternoon for a battle between two Golden State Athletic Conference teams ranked inside of the NAIA's top-15 as the No. 11 Eagles faced the No. 15 Vanguard Lions.
 
Two goals coming as a result of some costly fouls ended up giving the home team the 2-0 edge over the Eagles as it handed Biola its first conference loss of the 2015 season.
 
The first 45 minutes was one of those halves of soccer that leaves a bitter taste in your mouth. There were some great chances for both sides with lots of back-and-forth runs all over the field, but a late goal off a free kick chance left the Eagles trailing 1-0 heading into the break.

The teams were even with shots at six and Biola had the advantage with four shots-on-goal, but a 7-2 disadvantage in fouls called is ultimately what ended up costing the Eagles.
 
In the 44^th minute the center official called a foul as Biola seemingly cleanly won the ball back in the midfield. This gave Haley Bruce a free kick that she directed right into the middle of the penalty box. Jessica Taukeiaho managed to get on the end of it and redirect it to the back of the net for the first score of the match.
 
That gave the Lions an emotional lift heading into the break. Biola would look to regroup, knowing that it had outscored its opponents 23-4 in the second half of games this season.
 
Despite increased time of possession for the Eagles throughout the beginning of the second frame, it was a foul that again put Biola behind the eight ball. Madison Lopp hooked a looping free kick over the wall and into the back of the net to increase the Lions' advantage to two in the 70^th minute.
 
After that goal the game continued to be non-stop pressure by Biola in the offensive third, but the Lions back line kept Biola from stringing together enough passes to cash in on the opportunities deep in their zone.
 
Because of Vanguard's ability to clear the ball out of their defensive end neither team had a single shot over the final 30 minutes of play.
 
The Eagles fall to 11-2-3 (5-1-2 GSAC) while Vanguard improves to 10-4-1 (4-2-1 GSAC) and moves up to a tie for third in the conference standings. Biola remains three points ahead of No. 8 Westmont in first place with two more games played than the Warriors.
 
Biola has two more regular season matches to play. Its next comes this Saturday at No. 21 The Master's College at 11:00 a.m.