WARRENSBURG, Mo.. -- Fourth-seed Minnesota State prevailed 3-0 after scoring three goals in eight minutes to open the second half of a first-round NCAA Central Region Tournament match against fifth-seed Oklahoma Baptist, Friday afternoon at the University of Central Missouri.
With the win, the Mavericks improve their all-time NCAA postseason record to 11-11-5 and extend their unbeaten streak to 17 matches, dating back to Sept. 19, and now own an 18-2-2 overall record. With the loss, the Bison finish the season at a 13-6-1 overall mark.
The Mavericks and Bison played 45 minutes of scoreless soccer to open the match in a quiet first half. After one half of play, OBU led the shooting effort 8-5.
MSU's offense came alive out of the break and saw sophomore Olivia Thoen score her first collegiate goal in the 48th minute off an assist from Allie Williams to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead. Four minutes later, junior midfielder Caitlin Brown scored her second goal of the season after taking a pass from Williams, who collected her second assist of the match on Brown's goal that gave MSU a 2-0 lead, in the 52nd minute. Roughly two minutes later, the Mavericks scored their third goal, just 8:24 after scoring their first, when junior forward Jenny Vetter provided another insurance marker for her team-high 18th goal of the season and made the jump from eighth to tied for sixth on MSU's single-season goals chart as a result. The Mavericks held the 3-0 advantage up until the end and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Central Region Tournament with the victory over the Bison.
Sophomore Mackenzie Rath (13-1-2) made five stops in the match while collecting her 11th shutout of the season (tied for fourth in a single-season at MSU) and the 12th of her career (tied for seventh all-time at MSU). On the other end, Ireland Jeffrey (11-3-1) made two saves with three goals against in the match.
In total, MSU and OBU played a tight match that saw a dead tie in the shots effort. In attempts, the Mavericks and Bison each had 15 shots while also lacing a third of them on goal with each side having five on net, respectively. MSU edged OBU in corner kicks 5-4.
The Mavericks take on the winner of today's second match, first-seed Central Missouri vs. eighth-seed Southwest Oklahoma State, on Sunday, Nov. 21 back at the South Recreation Complex in Warrensburg at 1:00 p.m. for a chance to advance to the regional final.
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