One year ago, the John Carroll University women's soccer team bowed out in the quarterfinals of the OAC tournament, falling 2-1 to the Mount Union Purple Raiders.

History would not repeat itself on Monday evening at Don Shula Stadium.

Justina Fortson, Rachel Braunegg and Bailey Fischer each tallied a goal, while Jaclyn Audino picked up a pair of assists on corner kicks to propel the Blue Streaks to a 3-1 victory over Mount Union in the quarterfinals of the 2017 OAC Tournament.

The assembled crowd witnessed head coach Michael Marich's fourth postseason win, setting the stage for a semifinal bout with Capital University on Wednesday at 7 p.m. from Purmort Field at Bernlohr Stadium in Bexley, Ohio.

The slick conditions played a factor in the early stages of the match, as only Braunegg could uncork a shot on goal in the first 11 minutes.

A corner-kick opportunity broke the deadlock. Audino laced a high-arching cross over the middle of the field, setting up Fortson for her seventh goal of the season and the first postseason goal of her career. Fortson guided the ball off her body, making just enough contact and having just enough momentum to find the back of the net with 33 minutes left to play in the first half.

Defense defined the majority of the period, with the unit comprised of Taylor Newhart, Lexie Keller, Alyssa Simon and Hannah Brinning holding the Purple Raiders shotless until the 30th minute, when Alex Brown fired a shot into the waiting arms of Rhianna Guarnera.

A free kick proved to be the equalizer. Brown maintained her assertiveness on the offensive end of the ball, drawing a foul before placing a high-velocity kick into the top-right portion of the net, over the head of the leaping Guarnera.

The programs headed into the intermission with the score tied at 1-1.

As the night progressed, the defensive intensity picked up between both teams, as Fischer and Katie O'Donnell found a crease in the defense before Paige Freel notched a pair of saves to keep the even tally intact.

Another scoring scenario presented itself for JCU on the other end of the field in the 70th minute.

Audino continued her corner-kick clinic, booting the ball across to a cluster composed of Braunegg and Fortson, paving an opening to a header goal for the former of the two Blue Streaks.

Six minutes later, the momentum mounted even further. A pass-to-pass sequence from O'Donnell to Sydney Scello created a lane for Fischer in transition – her 13th goal of the campaign.

The two-goal advantage was insurmountable for the Purple Raiders, moving JCU two wins from a conference title.

It was a tremendous effort by the defense, as the backline of Brinning and Simon repelled the Purple Raiders for the opening 35 minutes of the second half, allowing just one shot over that stretch as JCU's relentless pressure eventaully led to the two goal lead.

Guarnera needed to make just three saves as JCU won the shots battle, 20-6 (11-3 in the second period).