HAMILTON, Ont. - The McMaster women's soccer team closed out the regular season with a 3-1 win over the Laurier Golden Hawks on Sunday afternoon and have clinched a first-round home playoff game at Ron Joyce Stadium on Wednesday.

The Marauders had a strong start, scoring early on in the contest. Madison Goertz (Saskatoon, Sask.) netted her second goal of the season in the 11th minute to give the Marauders a 1-0 lead. Alena Spehar (Milton, Ont.) added the assist. Spehar doubled the Marauder lead in extra time off a pass from Joelle Chackal (Ottawa, Ont.) to make the score 2-0 at the halftime break. 

In the second half, the Golden Hawks found the back of the net in the 81st minute to narrow the McMaster lead to one. That didn't stand for long as Chackal scored her first of the season, unassisted. The maroon and grey picked up the 3-1 win and full three points in the regular season finale.

Laurier recorded 19 shots to McMaster's 16 during the 90 minute contest. Seven different Marauders recorded shots throughout the match. Julia Kutman (Ottawa, Ont.) and Jana Febbraro (Hamilton, Ont.) split goaltending duties on Sunday afternoon and combined for 13 saves.

McMaster finished the season with a 5-2-5 record as the fourth seed in the OUA West.

Next Up 

The Marauders have qualified for the post season and will now host the fifth place Brock Badgers at Ron Joyce Stadium on Wednesday October 26th. Game time is set for 7pm.