After beginning the season with a 3-0 loss to perennial Canadian power Trinity Western (B.C.) University, MVNU traveled to Oregon for a 3-2 win over Corban College and a 6-1 loss at third-ranked Concordia University. Then, the team rattled off four wins and a 1-1 tie against 18th-ranked Berry (Ga.) College as the Lady Cougars won the W.g. Grinders Cougar Classic and improved to 5-2-1.

Following a 3-2 loss to Urbana University to open AMC South Division play, MVNU went 7-1-0 over the rest of the regular season as the Lady Cougars captured a share of their fourth AMC South Division title in the past five years. One of the highlights during this stretch was a 4-0 victory over NAIA No. 10 Ohio Dominican University to help secure a share of the conference crown.

As the top seed in the NAIA Region IX Tournament, MVNU earned the right to host the Final Four. In the semifinals, the Lady Cougars downed Notre Dame College 4-1 to advance to the region championship match for the second time in school history. In the title match, MVNU fell 2-0 to Houghton (N.Y.) College.

With the loss to Houghton, the Lady Cougars participated in the NCCAA East Region Tournament and blanked Nyack (N.Y.) College 2-0 in the championship match to earn a berth in the NCCAA National Tournament in Kissimmee, Florida.

After defeating Palm Beach Atlantic (Fla.) University 1-0 in the first round of the tournament, MVNU fell 3-0 to NAIA No. 11 Indiana Wesleyan University, the eventual NCCAA national champion, in the semifinals. Then, in the third-place match, the Lady Cougars dropped a hard-fought 3-2 decision to NAIA No. 22 Trinity Christian (Ill.) College to close out their season.

“I went into this season with a lot of question marks,” said MVNU head coach Jonathan Meade, who was selected as both the NCCAA East Region and NAIA Region IX Coach of the Year. “We had lost a very talented senior class last year and also had a few players who didn’t return to leave us with a lot of holes to fill. As we went through the season, the players responded very well to the different options we tried. Heading into October, I feel like the team really started to play some good soccer. They didn’t stop there as we finished the regular season with a lot of confidence and in a great position for the postseason.”

“I think this team will go down as one of the top passing teams in our program’s history,” Meade continued. “They really made it a priority to knock the ball around and create opportunities with good ball movement. On top of that, our back line was stellar on defense and our attack produced three different players with at least 10 goals or more. I was very happy with the progress that the team made this year. Before our last match, I told the team that they were a very special group. This group played good soccer, but was also a very close team off the field. That always makes a season more enjoyable.”

Individually, five seniors wrapped up their careers. Kristy Brandolini, a forward, registered 14 goals and a team-high 16 assists as she became the program’s career leader in goals scored (70) and points (189) and finished second in career assists (49). She also set school records for assists in a match (4) and points in a match (10) against the University of Rio Grande.

Defender Stacy Robey registered two assists and helped anchor the defense that posted nine shutouts, while midfielders Jessica Pagano (one assist) and Molly Dible were key players off the bench for the Lady Cougars. Goalkeeper Melissa Peters also saw action in goal in nine matches and posted a 1.69 goals against average with 11 saves.

“I do want to say a thank you to our seniors,” said Meade. “They have left a positive legacy of hard work and excellence both on the field and in the classroom. I am very proud of them.”

Freshman forward Jessica Estep had an outstanding first collegiate season as she led the team with 22 goals to go with three assists as she moved into fifth place in school history in goals and eighth place in career points (47). Junior midfielder Page Miller added 10 goals and eight assists to rank fifth in school history in career points (59), sixth in career goals (21), and sixth in career assists (17), while sophomore midfielder Erin Miller registered five goals and three assists.

Junior Kelly Sgambellone (one goal and three assists) and sophomores Nikki Bruscino (one goal and two assists) and Angie Misamore (one goal and two assists) joined with Robey on the back line. Freshman Denče Stentz also played in all 23 matches with seven starts on the back line.

In the midfield, freshmen Challyn Dobson (three goals and one assist) and Jamie Blair (one assist) both played in all 23 matches with Dobson starting in each match. Freshman forward Jena Dickerson (two goals and three assists), junior forward Beth Watkins (one goal and one assist), junior midfielder Raquel Crocker (one goal), and freshman Bekah Blankenship (one assist) all added depth for MVNU off the bench.

In goal, freshman Jenessa Loewen was the primary start for the Lady Cougars as she posted a 1.39 goals against average with six shutouts and 65 saves while starting 20 matches and playing in all 23. In addition to Peters making three starts and playing in nine matches, sophomore Whitney Tatko also played in six matches with a 0.57 goals against average with seven saves.

“I think our upperclassmen did a nice job of setting a good example of caring for each other while our freshmen made it easy to bring them into our Lady Cougar family by diving in head first and taking in all the opportunities that help bring about great team chemistry and unity,” said Meade. “This was a fun team to coach.”