The Malone University women's soccer team kept its Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) postseason hopes alive with a 2-1 victory at Ashland University on Sunday afternoon.

Neither team would notch a goal in the first 45 minutes of action, resulting in a 0-0 standstill. The Eagles would have the 9-to-4 shot advantage over the Pioneers in the first half.

10 minutes into the second half, Ashland's Deijah Swihart shot to the bottom left of the net to tally the first goal of the game, giving the hosts the 1-0 lead with 35 minutes left in regulation.

Nine minutes later, the Pioneers took advantage of a corner kick opportunity as Corrin Hayberg kicked a crisp pass to Brianna Smith who found the back of the net with her 10^th goal of the season. The game would be tied at 1-1 with 26 minutes left in the second half.   

At the 80:53 marker, Christine Najjar drilled a shot to the bottom left of the net to record her 12^th goal of the season, making it a 2-1 contest with 10 minutes left in the game.

Ashland had some opportunities during the last five minutes of the contest, but the Pioneers' defense played stellar, giving Malone the 2-1 victory.

The Pioneers will welcome rival Walsh University on Friday, October 30^th for a 12:30 p.m. kick-off. If Malone beats Walsh on Friday, the Pioneers clinch the #8 seed in the upcoming GLIAC Postseason Tournament.  A tie or a loss to the Cavaliers would clinch the final spot for Walsh. Friday is also Senior Day as the team will be honoring the graduating class at halftime.

Game Notes:
-Brianna Smith notched her 10^th goal of the season to increase her point total to 25 (10 goals, five assists). She is tied for 10^th on Malone's all-time career scoring list with 21 goals. 
-Najjar registered her 12^th goal of the season to increase her point total to 28 (12 goals, four assists). She is 8^th on Malone's all-time career scoring list with 24 goals and 11^th on Malone's most points in a career list with 55. This was Najjar's fourth straight game scoring at least one goal.  
-Goalkeeper Leah Rauscher recorded 10 saves on the day to increase her season total to 109 saves.
-Corrin Hayberg collected her fifth assist on the season.