On their final home game of the regular season, the Albert Lea girls’ soccer team was able to pull away with a win over Mankato East Thursday night.

Albert Lea entered the game on a four-game streak and riding a big wave of momentum.

The Tigers scored the only goal of the game with less than eight minutes left in the match as they went on to beat the Cougars, 1-0.

It seemed as though the two teams were going to need more time to settle the match. That was until Albert Lea sophomore Turena Schultz rose to the occasion. Schultz scored the goal off an assist from junior Helena Edstrom with 7:57 remaining in the game. The goal would prove to be enough to surge the Tigers to a victory making it five wins in a row.

Although the game was tied for a majority of the night, the Tigers always seemed to be in control. Most of the first and second half was spent on the Cougar’s side of the pitch.

Despite the match being decided by one goal, two other shots that were just inches off could have made it 3-0.

Early in the second half freshman Jacy Rosas took a shot from the right side of the field that would hit the far post and narrowly miss taking a favorable bounce back into the goal.

Just a few minutes later, senior Rachel Rehnelt let a penalty kick fly that hit the cross bar and bounced away.

Head coach Laura Wangen talked about her team performance Thursday and moving forward.

“This win was huge,” she said. “Going into the playoffs, this is the team we want. We’re really playing as a team right now. We’re clicking and it’s not just one person doing it, it’s  a team effort. We’re preparing, we’re getting ready for the playoffs.”

The Tigers up their record to 6-6 on the season and will play on the road Tuesday when they take on Mankato West Scarlets.