Saint Francis (3-2-0) got on the scoreboard first in the 25th minute when Sara Thieme sent a pass to Alissa Werst who found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.

MVNU (1-2-0) answered in the 39th minute when senior forward Page Miller (left) was taken down in the box and the Lady Cougars were awarded a penalty kick. Junior defender Mara Hughes stepped up and buried the opportunity to knot the score at 1-1 as she scored the team’s first goal of the year after being shut out twice.

The score remained tied at 1-1 through halftime. Then, in the 51st minute, sophomore forward Jessica Estep cut the ball back against a defender to freshman forward Erin Washington, who chipped a shot over Saint Francis goalkeeper Kari Baughn and into the back of the net for a 2-1 advantage - MVNU’s first of the season.

Four minutes later, the Lady Cougars tacked on an insurance goal when senior midfielder Erin Miller played a ball to Page Miller, who dribbled through the defense and slotted a shot into the back of the net to increase MVNU’s lead to 3-1. The goal was the 22nd of Page Miller’s career and gave her 61 career points - both which rank fifth in school history in their respective categories.

That would prove to be all the scoring in the match as the MVNU defense was able to maintain the lead. Sophomore goalie Jenessa Loewen posted eight saves, while Baughn stopped five shots for Saint Francis. The Lady Cougars held a 12-11 edge in total shots and a 5-3 margin in corner kicks, while Saint Francis led 9-8 in shots on goal.

“Page and Erin (Miller) both played well and stepped up in this match,” said MVNU head coach Jonathan Meade. “We had talked with the upperclassmen about setting an example for the new players to follow. They did that today. Angie (Misamore), Kelly (Sgambellone), and Mara all worked very hard, and Kelci (Rhodes) and Erin (Washington) also did some good things. Erin made her first start a memorable one by scoring her first collegiate goal. We need to build off this performance and continue to improve.”

The Lady Cougars will be back in action at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday when MVNU will square off with host Spring Arbor, who defeated Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) College 7-0 in Friday’s other first round match.