In the semifinal, both teams had to battle through the elements, but Northern in particular did well in adapting to the very difficult field surface which seemed to even the level of play. The first half was a battle with both teams eager to get on the board first to punch their ticket to the finals. Both teams would have early looks at goal with one shot in particular from Kristina Klusek missing just wide of the Cardinal goal. However, with less than 10 minutes to go in the half Northern would earn a corner that would be taken by freshman Hannah Moloney. Klusek would find Moloney's corner after a scrum in the box and send it to the far post where a waiting Sami Atkinson would send a lofted header over the Otterbein keeper and into the back of the net. The ONU lead wouldn't last long as Otterbein would even the score less than one minute later off of a rebounded free kick. The scoreline would remain notched at one a piece into the half.
Determined to bring the final back home, the Polar Bears would begin the second half with relentless determination. Their efforts would pay off less than three minutes into the half as Junior Lauren Brown collected the ball just inside the Otterbein half and distributed it to Kristina Klusek. Klusek dribbled and beat not one, but four Cardinal defenders before sending her shot past the keeper for the eventual game winner. This time Otterbein did not have an answer and for the rest of the half, solid defensive work from the Polar Bears would ensure the win. With the result, ONU will host John Carroll for the OAC Tournament Championship this Saturday, November 3rd, at 2pm. The winner will receive the conference automatic bid into the 2012 NCAA tournament.
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