Box Score St. Paul, Minn.. --- Sophomore Korey Kronforst's goal less than three minutes into the match proved to be decisive as fourth-rated Minnesota State shutout Concordia, 1-0, to claim its Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference opener Thursday night at Sea Foam Stadium.

MSU (3-0-0, 1-0-0 NSIC) extends its NSIC unbeaten streak to 21 and its overall unbeaten streak to 24 matches - both school records - while CU falls to 0-3-0 overall and 0-1-0 in conference action. Junior Molly McGough notched her third shutout of the year and 20th career shutout in league play, third-best in NSIC history and one shy of tying for second all-time.

The Maverick offense came to life just 2:28 into the contest when senior Courtney Vallarelli had her initial shot blocked by a CU defender, but sophomore Korey Kronforst buried the rebound into the left side for her first goal of the season giving MSU an early 1-0 advantage. Golden Bear sophomore McKenzie Buck threatened to tie the match six minutes later but was denied by McGough, who made a fantastic diving save to her right, preserving the lead. McGough made two additional saves at the end of the first half as CU held an 8-7 advantage in shots and a 5-4 mark in shots on goal after 45 minutes of play.

In the second half, Minnesota State peppered Golden Bear sophomore Emma Gartner with 11 shots and five on goal but was unable to find the second one as the match ended, 1-0.

Kronforst fired a match-high six shots, while McGough recorded five saves - all in the first half - as she earned her 28th career shutout. Gartner made a match-high eight saves for the Golden Bears. Overall, MSU outshot CU 20-8 and 9-5 in shots on goal.

No. 4 Minnesota State concludes its non-conference schedule Sunday at 12 p.m. in Allendale, Mich., as the Mavericks take on No. 2 Grand Valley State at the GVSU Soccer Field.