Finish up strong.

A common coach cliché, but it describes the way the NIU women’s soccer team ended its season Friday.

The Huskies battled for 110 scoreless minutes with MAC Champion Toledo in Friday’s semifinal matchup, only to fall 4-3 on penalty kicks. Senior Elaine Eliadis missed the final shot in the sixth round of penalty kicks to end the game.

“Penalty kicks are unfortunate because our girls played so well,” head coach Marci Miller-Jobson said. “Toledo was just able to convert their kicks and get the win.”

Molly Cornwell, MAC Player of the Year, opened up the penalty kick session for the Rockets and scored to take a 1-0 first round lead. In the next round, Toledo struck again, as did Karen Enockson, to make the score 2-1.

In round three, Jenna Clausen drilled a shot after a save by goalkeeper Lindsey Curnock to tie the game at two. The two teams then traded goals as Lisa Maier struck to keep the score at 3-3. NIU missed consecutive shots in the fifth and sixth round as Brittany Hensley scored the winning goal for the Rockets.

“I give credit to all of the kickers to have the desire to take the kicks in that high-pressure situation,” Miller-Jobson said. “That’s just the way penalty kicks work. Sometimes they go your way, sometimes they don’t.”

NIU’s defense sparkled as Toledo’s Cornwell was held without a shot Friday. Cornwell, who had a MAC-leading 14 goals, was kept in check particularly by senior defender Katie Sturges.

“Katie did a great job playing against her. She played unbelievable,” Miller-Jobson said. “She is one player who deserved a lot more accolades than she received. Every game, she matched the best player on the opposing team.”

NIU outshot the Rockets 14-9 Friday. They also led in shots on goal 6-2.

“It’s really upsetting to lose on penalty kicks, but at the same time, it’s still satisfying that every person put forth everything they had,” Sturges said. “We’ve come so far throughout this season. Every day we focused on the things we were working on and it really paid off in the end.”

NIU ended the season third in the MAC with a 10-5-5 record, their best since 1998. In their last seven games, they finished 5-1-1.

“They finished the season playing their best soccer,” Miller-Jobson said. “I’m really impressed with the improvement of the girls and this program. It shows the hard work and dedication they’ve put forth.”

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