Prior to the start of the match, the Dragons took the time to honor their seniors, and little did they know that it would be one of those seniors that would allow the Dragons to have a home postseason match.
The 1st half was a struggle for both offenses with the Cardinals holding a 10-4 advantage in shots. Tiffin goalkeeper Samantha Ortenzi was up for the task, making four first half saves. The Dragons playing into a strong wind in the opening half, had only one of their shots come on goal. Tiffin did a great job defending the corner kick as the Cardinals attempted six in the half.
The 2nd half was more of the same, with the Cardinals still holding an advantage in shots. Ortenzi continued her stellar play in goal collecting five more saves in the final half. After going back and forth in the midfield, the Dragons caught a break as Svetlana Gudenkova raced down the field and found herself one on one with the Cardinals' keeper. The netminder charged out of the goal to attempt to swipe the ball from Svetlana, but a quick juke by Gudenkova left the keeper in the dust and the net wide open for the game winner.
The goal by Gudenkova was her fifth this year, and it was her second game winning goal this season. Ortenzi earned the win in goal, collecting nine saves to bring her career total to 496.
The Dragons hold down the 4th spot in the GLIAC, qualifying them for a GLIAC Tournament home game. The Dragons qualify for the tournament for the first time since 2012. The home postseason game is the first for Tiffin since the 2010 season.
The Dragons have one more regular season game remaining, traveling to Ashland next Friday for a 7:00 pm night game with the Eagles.