It wasn't the result the Jefferson City Lady Jays were looking to get in their soccer season opener.
But Saturday afternoon's 1-0 loss to the Ursuline Academy Bears at the 179 Soccer Park may pay dividends down the road.
"There's a lot to build on looking to the future," Jefferson City coach Tom Guinn said. "It was a huge learning experience.
"You can look at this game as being an advantage for us because it shows we still have some work to do."
Ursuline was in control of the pace of play for much of the first half. The Bears kept the ball in the Lady Jays' defensive end for much of the first 40 minutes, peppering Jefferson City keeper Megan Foster with shots on goal.
The Lady Bears got the game's lone goal midway through the first half. Ursuline chipped a ball into the penalty area in front of the Jefferson City net and Caite Huegsen was there to settle it and knock the shot into the back of the net.
"We fell asleep for a split-second and bam, it's in the back of the net," Guinn said. "You can't let a kick like that bounce in the penalty area."
The goal came on the Bears' eight shot on goal in the game. Ursuline finished with 12 shots on goal in the first half and 16 in the game.
"Megan stood on her head, I don't have a negative thing to say about the way she played," Guinn said. "It was incredible to give up just one goal.
"She kept us in it."
Jefferson City's back line, which included a pair of freshmen, hadn't seen pressure like this in the preseason or the Jamboree.
"We had to give them a little more help than we wanted to in that first half," Guinn said. "Ursuline had a lot of speed and were able to get in on us a little bit."
Jefferson City, which had just one shot in the first half, went into intermission searching for answers
"We just needed to stay positive," Guinn said. "Ursuline Academy is always a quality program, one of the most reputable programs in the state."
The Jefferson City offense looked a little better in the second half, managing three shots. And the defense limited Ursuline to six shots.
"We had better chances to score, not a lot of quality chances, but there were chances," Guinn said. "In the second half, we battled and competed.
The girls played their best, they gave it everything the had."
Jefferson City is back in action Tuesday against School of the Osage at the 179 Soccer Park. The varsity game will be played first and is slated for a 5 p.m. start. The JV teams will follow with a game limited to one half.
In Saturday's JV game, Ursuline blanked Jefferson City 4-0.