With the OUA season ticking to its conclusion rapidly and points at a premium, the Marauders crucially secured six of six over the course of the weekend with a 3-1 win over the Algoma Thunderbirds Sunday.

The forward duo of Steph Roberts and Megan Mamela fired the home side into a 2-0 lead within 20 minutes of play, and Georgia Merriman's first career goal put the result beyond doubt in the 78th minute.

Sweeping their weekend series against the Thunderbirds and scoring six goals in the process, the Marauders improved to 5-4-1 on the season and took sole control of fourth position in the OUA West division with just four matches to play before the onset of the playoffs.

Should McMaster retain that spot or improve upon it, the team would play host to a first round playoff match at Ron Joyce Stadium.

Outshooting the Thunderbirds 10-7, the Marauders directed six of those shots on goal and forced three saves from Algoma goalkeeper Alexis Trigiani-Kirkwood.

Getting her first start of the season between the pipes for McMaster, Deanna Persico stopped three of the four shots she faced to record the win.

Roberts opened the scoring in just the sixth minute, reeling in a pass from Victoria Orfei and cutting free of the Algoma backline before firing home for 1-0.

Continuing the one-way traffic, Mamela doubled the home side's lead in the 20th minute, when Roberts' initial effort fell to her and was duly dispatched from short range.

McMaster was getting the better of possession, but Algoma introduced a measure of tension into the contest in the 72nd minute when substitute Anna Glasgow caught Persico out from a corner kick, launching an in-swinging ball that beat the Marauders keeper high.

Six minutes later, Merriman erased any doubt creeping into the minds of the Marauders faithful, getting hold of the ball inside the box and quickly dispatching an effort past Trigiani-Kirkwood to give Mac the 3-1 lead.

NEXT UP: McMaster has little time to celebrate its weekend sweep, and returns to action at Ron Joyce Stadium on Wednesday, October 9 when the Marauders welcome the Waterloo Warriors for a 6:00 p.m. match under the lights.