WAUKESHA, Wis. – Mallory Koula scored both goals for Lawrence University as the Vikings defeated Carroll University 2-1 in the Midwest Conference Tournament championship game Saturday at Schneider Stadium.
The tournament championship gives Lawrence an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament. This is Lawrence’s third trip to the NCAA Tournament and the first since the Vikings played in back-to-back NCAA Tournaments in 2000 and 2001.
“It’s what we set as a goal when we started preseason,” Lawrence coach Lisa Sammons said of playing in the NCAA Tournament. “We had the desire and the belief that we could get there.”
Lawrence (9-8-1) learns its opponent when the pairings are announced on Monday.
Third-seeded Lawrence gave up an early goal, but that was all the Vikings would allow. Sarah Tennett scored for top-seed Carroll (14-6-0) just 51 seconds into the match.
It didn’t take long for the Vikings to strike back. Koula, a junior forward from Kimberly, Wis., scored off a pass from Sarah Ehlinger at the 5:35 mark to tie the match at 1-1.
Koula then blasted a shot past Carroll goalkeeper Taylor Mclean that hit the underside of the crossbar and went in to give Lawrence a 2-1 lead at 18:03. Koula has now scored eight goals in her last three matches.
“Mallory has really picked up her momentum,” said Sammons, adding that during the season teams had worked hard to neutralize Lawrence’s prolific scorer. “Going into this postseason she worked on different ways to be creative that teams didn’t know how to defend, and she has been finding the back of the net.”
Lawrence goalkeeper Cassie Burke and the defense made that lead stand up. Burke made 11 saves, including nine in the second half, to preserve the win.
“Our defense was amazing,” Sammons said. “With 15 minutes left, (Carroll) threw another forward up there. We countered, stuck with them and got them frustrated. It helped take them out of their game.”
Lawrence entered the MWC Tournament as the third seed and topped second seed Lake Forest College 4-3 in the semifinals on Friday.