After falling 2-0 at Cougar Field to Cedarville back on September 18 as part of a 2-5 start to the season, MVNU (12-6-1) got on the scoreboard in the 20th minute of Saturday’s match. After freshman midfielder Courtney Ricker was taken down in the box, sophomore forward Jessica Estep (left) converted the penalty kick opportunity to give the No. 4 seed Lady Cougars a 1-0 lead.

Despite holding a 10-3 advantage in total shots in the first half and a 4-1 edge in shots on goal, MVNU was unable to add to its lead in the first half as the Lady Cougars were forced to settle for the 1-0 advantage at the half.

However, the second half would prove to be a different story for MVNU as the Lady Cougars would score four goals in the final 32 minutes of the match to pull away for the big victory.

Senior midfielder Page Miller got the second-half scoring under way in the 59th minute when she took a pass from Estep and scored her seventh goal of the season and the 28th goal of her career to put MVNU up 2-0.

Seven minutes later, Estep notched her second goal of the match and her team-leading 18th of the season when she side-volleyed a shot into the back of the net to make it 3-0 in favor of the Lady Cougars. Senior midfielder Erin Miller started the play with a corner kick that junior defender Mara Hughes one-timed to Estep for the finish as both Miller and Hughes registered an assist. The goal was also the 40th of Estep’s career as she ranks fifth in school history in less than two complete seasons.

The lead grew to 4-0 in the 77th minute when freshman midfielder Lindsey Shaffer scored her first career goal when Ricker’s cross eluded Cedarville goalkeeper Amber Laing and Shaffer fired a shot inside the near post.

Shaffer set up the final goal for MVNU in the 83rd minute when she centered a ball to freshman defender Heidi Moeckel in the middle of the box and Moeckel’s shot went right through Laing’s hands for Moeckel’s first career goal and a 5-0 lead.

That would prove to be all the scoring in the match as sophomore goalkeeper Jenessa Loewen (right) and the Lady Cougars’ defense posted the team’s ninth shutout of the year. Loewen stopped two shots on goal, while Laing finished with eight saves for the No. 5 seed Lady Jackets (10-7-2). MVNU out-shot Cedarville 21-6 overall and 13-2 on goal and also held a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks.

“The girls really wanted to come out and play well against Cedarville after losing early in the season,” said MVNU coach Jonathan Meade. “We rushed things a little in the first half and were just not able to get the build-up in our attack that we needed. We talked a lot about that at halftime, and the players really responded well in the second half. I was very pleased with the way that we played, and this was a nice playoff win.”

The Lady Cougars will now advance to the semifinals of the AMC Tournament to be held next Friday at top-seeded Ohio Dominican University. MVNU will take on the host Lady Panthers at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, while No. 2 seed Notre Dame College will square off with the winner of Saturday’s other match between No. 3 seed Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) College and No. 6 seed Walsh University. The two semifinal winners will then advance to the AMC Tournament championship match next Saturday at 7:00 p.m. The AMC Tournament champion will advance to the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round on November 22.