Snouffer (left) got the Cougars (12-5-1, 6-2-1 AMC) on the scoreboard in the 31st minute when he scored off a corner kick as the kick crossed the goal mouth, bounced once, and found the side netting just inside the far post for a 1-0 MVNU lead. The goal was his seventh of the season.

The score remained that way until the second half when in the 55th minute Snouffer took a pass from senior midfielder Scott Spangler and finished off the play with a shot inside the near post for a 2-0 lead as he tied junior midfielder Chris Mast for the team lead with his eighth goal of the year. For Spangler, the assist was his team-leading 10th of the campaign and the 25th of his career as he moved into a tie for seventh place on the program’s all-time list.

Snouffer closed out the scoring and his Halloween hat trick in the 66th minute when he blasted a shot from 30 yards out into the back of the net for a 3-0 lead. The goal moved him into the team lead with nine goals this season.

The Cougars posted their 11th shutout of the season as senior goalkeeper Alex Stout posted six saves in notching his school-record 36th shutout of his illustrious career. Kevin Bender stopped three shots for the Yellow Jackets (10-5-3, 5-2-2 AMC), who led 12-10 in total shots and were tied 6-6 in shots on goal. MVNU did lead 4-3 in corner kicks.

“We talked about before that match that in big matches like this that big players need to step up,” said MVNU coach Paul Furey. “We had a number of guys have a superb match for us. Certainly, Cody with three goals and really coming on and having two great strikes for his second and third goal to put the match out of reach were huge for us. Our back line also played exceptionally well. Eric (Appiah) has been playing very well in the absence of Steve (Wilging) while he recovers from an injury. Alex (Stout) had a couple of big saves including one in particular on a header with around 12 minutes to go that really could have given them some momentum. Scott (Spanger), our team leader, really helped control things in the middle of the field.”

“Overall, we just really came to play tonight which is a testament to these guys and shows that they really want it pretty bad,” Furey added. “One of the things we did really well tonight was winning the air game tonight. We really controlled the midfield and kept a lot of pressure on them in the attacking half. Even when we were up, we created some more chances for ourselves. It is nice that this has propelled us into the AMC playoff. That’s what we were striving to do. Even though it is not ideal and we have to have a play-in match, I know that these guys will come focused and ready to go on Saturday.

With the victory, MVNU secures the No. 4 seed in the five-team AMC Tournament. The Cougars will host No. 5 seed Walsh University next Saturday, November 7 with the winner advancing to the AMC Tournament semifinals on November 13 at Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) College to take on the host Raiders, who are the No. 1 seed and the regular-season AMC champs. The start time for Saturday’s match at Cougar Field versus Walsh has not been set yet. The other semifinal on November 13 will feature No. 2 seed Notre Dame College versus No. 3 seed Houghton (N.Y.) College. The AMC Tournament champion receives an automatic berth into the NAIA National Championship Opening Round on November 21.