Senior captain Sara Decker scored from 14 yards out with less than six minutes remaining as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville defeated Mercyhurst 2-1 on Sunday at Korte Stadium.
         The victory lifted the 24th-ranked Cougars to a 4-0 record and handed Mercyhurst its second straight loss. The Lakers are now 2-2.
         Kristine Armstrong put SIUE on the scoreboard first at 41:46 off a shot from Decker. It was Armstrong's second goal of the season.
         After coming out of the locker room at halftime, Mercyhurst pressed hard to start the second half. Mercyhurst finished with 17 shots, including 12 on-goal. SIUE goalkeeper Kristin Covalt picked up 11 saves.
         Mercyhurst tied the game at 83:41 as Lisa Casement scored from five yards out on an assist from Chelsea Fearnley.
         The Cougars didn't waste any time retaliating. Becky Baker speeded past her defender and slid a pass back to Decker on her left and watched Decker's third goal of the season. SIUE, which had 22 shots overall but only nine on-goal, scored just 73 seconds after Mercyhurst had tied the game.
         SIUE now is idle for nine days and returns for a road game at Lindenwood on Sept. 16. SIUE opens the Great Lakes Valley Conference season on Sept. 19 at Quincy.
                  -siue cougars-