EDMONTON - Two goals in the final four minutes of the first half were the difference on Sunday, as the Mount Royal Cougars earned a 3-1 road win over the Alberta Pandas at Foote Field. 

Scoreless for the first 40 minutes, the Cougars scored in the 41st and 45th minutes, with the two-goal cushion standing in the 3-1 win. Alberta scored their lone goal in the 87th, which was immediately countered by a Cougar tally in the 90th. 

Sydney Danielewicz scored twice for MRU, with Ashton Haycock scoring the game-winner in the 45th. Emily Duxbury scored the lone Pandas goal, one day after a 9-0 win over Lethbridge. 

The win for MRU (6-5-1) is an important one, as they now trail the 7-4-1 Pandas by three points in the race for third in the Prairie Division. The top three seeds will earn a bye through to the quarter-final, with the fourth and fifth seeds starting the playoffs in the play-in round. 

The Cougars outshot Alberta 10-6 in the first half, controlling a majority of possession. Their first tally came off an Alberta corner kick, as a quick re-direction up field led to a two-on-two. Isabella Chirico fed Danielewicz with a great through-ball, with the Cougar striker finishing just inside the box. 

Haycock doubled the lead just four minutes later, beating Panda keeper Autumn Wynn on a chip shot from 20 yards out. 

The Pandas pushed hard in the second, outshooting MRU 7-4. Duxbury finally broke the shutout in the 87th, beating Cougars keeper Lizzy Knight from 15 yards out. 

However, Danielewicz sealed the win in stoppage time, scoring off a turnover from Wynn inside her own box. 

The Pandas will host the 7-2-3 Saskatchewan Huskies and 1-6-5 Regina Cougars next weekend, while the Cougars will host the 5-6-1 Manitoba Bisons and 1-10-1 Winnipeg Wesmen in Calgary.