What's on Tap: The No. 4 Minnesota State soccer team will travel to North Dakota to play two NSIC teams this weekend. On Friday, the Mavericks will face U-Mary in Bismark, N.D., at 3:00 p.m., before heading to Minot, N.D., to play Minot State at 12:00 p.m., on Sunday.

Looking Back at Last Week: The Mavericks split last weekend's matches and now have a record of 6-1-0, 3-1-0 NSIC after suffering their first loss of the season. MSU defeated Minnesota Duluth 2-1, in double overtime, and then lost in double overtime to St. Cloud State 2-1, and sit in fourth place of the NSIC with the 3-1 conference record.
 
Minnesota State and Minnesota Duluth exchanged goals within 30 seconds of each other in the 13th minute of the first half. The Mavericks scored first as sophomore Brynn Desens gathered a pass from seniorDakota Wendell and rifled a shot past the Bulldog goalkeeper for her fourth goal of the season. UMD answered quickly however, as senior Emily Hinz took it upon herself and scored her fifth goal of the season. In the 106th minute, sophomore Jenny Vetter received a pass in the box by Wendell from just past the midfield line and was able to beat the Bulldog keeper to the low right hand corner for the win and her fourth goal of the season.

The Mavericks also scored first against St. Cloud State. Desens gathered a cross from Vetter and put the ball in the lower right corner. This was Desens' team-leading fifth goal of the season and put the Mavericks up 1-0 in the 25th minute. The Huskies answered and tied the match at 1-1 early in the second half when sophomore Claire Shea scored her second goal of the season with a shot to the lower left corner in the 56th minute of the match. In the 104th minute in the second overtime, Shea put away her second goal of the game and third of the season to give SCSU the win.

Senior Alexa Rabune (6-1) went 1-1 on the weekend, suffering her first loss in net, after making a total of six saves and allowing three goals in the two matches.

Desens' Dangerous Start: Brynn Desens is off to a fast start to the 2019 season. Desens currently leads the team in goals (5), assists (6) and points (16). These stats also put Desens on top of the leaderboard in the NSIC in all three categories. Nationally, Desens has the seventh most assists, 22nd most points and 42nd most goals in all of division two soccer.

NCAA Statistics: Early on in the season, MSU ranks among the best in both offensive and defensive categories. Offensively, the Mavericks have the ninth most assists per game (3.00), the 13th most points per game (9.00) and the 15th most goals per game (3.00). Defensively, MSU has the 12th best shutout percentage (.714), the 13th best save percentage (.912) and the 20th best goals-against average (0.47) in the nation. The Mavericks also have the 21st best win-loss percentage at .857.

Scouting U-Mary: The Marauders have started the 2019 season 3-1-1, 1-1-1 NSIC and sit eighth in the NSIC. Last weekend, U-Mary was shutout by Augustana 1-0 and then defeated Wayne State 4-0. 

Junior Hannah Richter currently paces the Marauders in goals and points, scoring two goals with an assist for five points. Sophomore Madisyn Waltman has made all five starts so far this season going 2-1-1 record with a 0.19 goals-against average, .947 save percentage, 18 saves and two shutouts. 

Facing U-Mary: The Mavericks have an unbeaten 12-0-2 record against the Marauders. MSU won their meeting last season at The Pitch 2-1in overtime over U-Mary. 

Scouting Minot State: The Beavers have started the 2019 season 1-6-0, 1-3-0 NSIC and sit 15th in the NSIC. Last weekend, Minot was defeated by Wayne State 2-1 and then beaten by Augustana 3-0 on the road. 

Senior Daniela Fonseca and freshman Anabel Noches have each scored a goal for two points for the Beavers. Senior Erin Rafferty has started six of the seven matches this season going 1-5-0 with a 1.67 goals-against average, .804 save percentage and 41 saves.

Facing Minot State: The Mavericks have a 6-1-3 record against the Beavers. MSU defeated Minot twice last season 5-0 in the regular season and then 1-0 in the NSIC Tournament Championship, both matches being in Mankato, Minn.

Looking Ahead: The Mavericks return to The Pitch to begin a four match homestand over the following two weekends. On Oct. 11, MSU will host Southwest Minnesota State at 3:00 p.m., and then will turn around to play Sioux Falls on Oct. 13 at 1:00 p.m.