Lake Forest delivered when it mattered most, powering past Ripon 3–0 on Friday morning at Farwell Field to secure a spot in the Midwest Conference Championship. The Foresters controlled the match from start to finish, out-shooting the Red Hawks 17–5 and carrying the momentum all morning.

The breakthrough came in the 20th minute when Junior Peter Cirbo buried his 10th goal of the season, sparking the Forester attack and setting the tone early. After halftime, Lake Forest continued to push the pace. Junior Gustavo Machado doubled the lead in the 57th minute with a composed finish to the bottom right corner of the net — his fourth of the year — giving LFC firm control of the match.

Just four minutes later, Cirbo struck again. The junior forward netted his second of the day and 11th of the season in the 62nd minute, putting the game out of reach and sending the Foresters charging toward the title match.

Defensively, the Foresters were outstanding. Freshman Marceli Okonski and Conor Leuschke combined for the clean sheet, while the back line held Ripon to zero shots on goal, closing out one of their most complete performances of the season.

With the win, Lake Forest improves to 18–1–0 and advances to the Midwest Conference Championship, where they will face Grinnell College tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. on Farwell Field as they look to finish the weekend by bringing home the trophy.