The 15th-ranked Misericordia University women's soccer team got second-half goals from Sam Helmstetter and Laura Roney, as the Cougars pulled away to earn a hard-fought 2-0 win over Freedom-rival Eastern on Wednesday night at Mangelsdorf Field.
 
“I'm really proud of us tonight,” said senior forward Sam Helmstetter. “We saw Eastern last year in the Freedom finals and lost, so it was a big game for us to fight back and pull out a win.”
 
Despite controlling possession for much of the first half and outshooting the Eagles 17-2, the Cougars never managed to find the back of the net, as the game remained scoreless at halftime.
 
“We talked before the game tonight about high pressure defending and getting up on the ball,” said MU head coach Mark Stauffer. “I thought that our pressure kept them from being able to build up on us and get good looks.”
 
MU continued to apply pressure and control the game early in the second half, getting several good looks early in the period. However, it was senior midfielder Laura Roney who put the Cougars on the scoreboard in the 71^st minute, heading a ball from Megan Lannigan past Eastern goalkeeper Alysia Goodman.
 
Just seven minutes later, Helmstetter took a ball from Caitlin Boyle and beat the Eagle defense to score her team-best tenth goal of the season and give the Cougars a bit of breathing room.
 
“We can't get discouraged if the shots don't go in early in the game,” said Helmstetter. “We have to make sure that we keep our heads up and keep trying, and we did that tonight.
 
Maureen Ciccosanti stopped seven shots in goal to earn her seventh shutout of the season, tying her for fourth in both the single-season and career MU shutout rankings.
 
With their goals, Helmstetter moved into a tie for fifth place in career goals with 36, while Roney is now tied for seventh with 30.
 
“Every game we have to play like it's our last,” said Roney. “We've worked for four years for this, and it's finally all starting to pay off.”
 
Stauffer noted that the win was a total team effort and that the Cougars' depth played a big role in the victory.
 
“Our reserves were tremendous tonight,” said Stauffer. “Whether we go 15 deep or 25 deep, we need those kids coming off the bench with a positive attitude giving everything they can. They are really accepting those roles, which is keeping team chemistry really strong. If we keep that up, we will continue to peak at the right time.”
 
With the win, MU is now 10-2-1 and 3-0 in the Freedom Conference. The Cougars' only losses have come against teams that are currently ranked in the top-four nationally.
 
“The biggest keys for us are confidence and believing in ourselves,” said Helmstetter. “We have to go into every match believing that we are the better team and that we will come out on top. Along with that, we also have to keep our heads up if things don't go our way.”
 
The Cougars will have another test on Saturday when they travel to Freedom foe DeSales.
 
“It's another conference game,” said Stauffer. “DeSales is always a tough place to play. However, if we do what we do well and stick to our game plan and execute, we'll be in a position to get the result that we want on Saturday.