Scotland face England in a decisive clash in Amsterdam on Saturday (BST 17.45 on BT Sport) in their bid to remain among the elite of European hockey.
The Tartan team set up the decider with a 3-1 success over while England came from 1-0 down to beat Ireland 5-1 at the same venue.
Newcomer Bronwyn Shields (Clydesdale Western), former Edinburgh University star Sarah Robertson (pictured) and McKenzie Bell (Uddingston) netted for Scotland who led 3-0 until late in the game
Two years ago, Scotland edged Italy 2-1 in the EuroHockey Championship II Final in Glasgow when both teams were promoted to the top division.
And it was Italy who turned up the heat in the opening quarter with German-based goaltender Amy Gibson producing three quality stops to deny the blue shirted opposition.
The second quarter saw a different complexion on the game and Shields struck her first goal for Scotland finishing at the near post and make it 1-0 following a penalty corner.
Great Britain player Robertson then showed her class following great work by Bell down the left . She fed Fiona Burnet who set up Robertson who clinically drilled the ball low into the net.
Then Sarah Jamieson (Watsonians) made powerful run into the D and picked out Fiona Semple at the far post but she sent the ball inches wide
Robertson rattled the upright with a great shot before the third goal arrived early in the final quarter when Bell spun and sent a thunderous shot into the bottom right corner.
Italy pulled one back from a penalty corner rebound when Sofia Laurito popped the ball into the roof of the net and they removed their goalkeeper for the final five minutes to have 11 outfield players.
Scotland game managed despite losing Robertson to the sideline on a card and Jamieson said, “We’ve put in a huge shift in this tournament with relatively little prep time, so it’s really great to get the win.
“We’ve been improving every game, being aggressive and retaining the ball – today we kept the ball better and it helped us make chances.
“Next we play England. The fifth game in the tournament is always hard on the body, but we’ll need to find the same energy again and take our chances when they come.”
Jen Wilson, Scotland’s head coach, praised Gibson for her saves in the first quarter which, she claimed, steadied the squad.
She added: “We got stronger and stronger as the game went on and we could have had more goals,”
She added: “We’ll look forward to the England game now. We’re up for the game and the challenge to ourselves is to make sure we keep progressing.”
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