PLYMOUTH, Wis. -- It was too little too late for the Alverno College women's soccer team in today's Northern Athletics Conference face-off with Lakeland College, as the Inferno fell 3-1 on the road on Saturday afternoon.

The Inferno (7-9, 3-6 NAC) struggled through a sub-par first half that left them down, 1-0, at the intermission. The second period saw an improved effort, but a goal by senior midfielder Alex Brenner (West Allis, Wis./Nathan Hale) in the 79th minute on an assist from senior forward Ellie LaFond (Waukesha, Wis./West) wasn't enough to boost their squad to victory as the Muskies found the back of the net twice more in the half.

"We didn't come out as sharp as I was hoping we would," said Alverno head coach Brittany Oliveira. "We played much better in the second half, but we had to fight an uphill battle the whole way. If we'd played the whole game like we did the last 30 minutes, I think we would have had a better result to show."

Lakeland (3-12, 2-7 NAC) took a 2-0 lead early in the second half before Brenner's goal put the Inferno within one score. But the Muskies responded to Alverno's goal, finding the back of the net at the 82:56 mark to seal the game.

The Inferno were out-shot 11-3 in shots on goal, with freshman goalkeeper Kayla Kennedy (Trempealeau, Wis./G.E.T.) recording eight saves while surrendering three goals to the Muskies.

Despite the loss, Oliveira hopes that her team will carry its strong finish forward into their final three regular season NAC matches, which feature teams in the top half of the league.

"We need to remember to come back to the spot where we left off at the end of today's game in terms of the level of intensity we need to play at for our upcoming games," Oliveira said. "We have some tough opponents coming up, but it's a great opportunity for us to challenge ourselves and face those tougher conference teams. We just need to come prepared mentally."

Alverno will look to get back on its feet beginning with Aurora University at home on Tuesday, Oct. 20. Kick-off time is set for 3 p.m.