Senior defender Claire Stark was responsible for the game's only goal as the No. 4 seed Lady Owls blanked the No. 5 Lady Lynx in the quarterfinals of the American Midwest Conference postseason tournament Friday night at Firley Field.
Stark broke the scoreless tie with her goal in the 40th minute, assisted by freshman forward McKenzie Gourley.
William Woods University (11-6-2) outshot Lindenwood University-Belleville 14-10, but the Lady Lynx (8-10-1) had a narrow 6-5 edge in shots on goal. The Lady Owls recorded the game's only corner kick.
William Woods freshman goalkeeper Abbey West tallied six saves to earn the shutout. It was West's eighth win of the season and second shutout.
"I'm very proud of this team," first-year Lady Owls head coach Lauren Robb said. "The work rate and effort tonight was at a high level.
"We knew it was going to be a tough game start to finish and they worked us hard for the whole 90 minutes."
William Woods will get to remain at home for its semifinal matchup against No. 8 seed Freed-Hardeman (Tennessee) University at 6 p.m. Monday. Freed-Hardeman (8-8-1) upset top-seeded Missouri Baptist University 2-0 in quarterfinal play Friday in St. Louis.
The Lady Owls won at Freed-Hardeman 5-2 on Sept. 17.
In Monday night's other AMC semifinal, No. 2 seed Columbia College hosts No. 3 Park University.