MINOT STATE, N.D. - The No. 3 Minnesota State Mavericks (4-0-1, 2-0 NSIC) put together a complete performance on Saturday afternoon, defeating Minot State 5-0 in a NSIC Conference matchup. From the opening whistle, MSU controlled possession, and spread the scoring across five different players in a dominant road showing.
Minnesota State's offense wasted no time applying pressure on Minot's back line.
Avery Korsching,
Maille Mathis, and
Maddix Archer all generated early chances, forcing goalkeeper
Jayen Alger into action. Alger made a strong save on a Korsching strike in the 12th minute, but the Mavericks broke through moments later when Archer buried a pass from Mathis in the 13th minute to open the scoring.
The Mavericks doubled their lead just three minutes later. Kovacs played a well-placed ball to Korsching, who finished for her first goal of the season, putting MSU ahead 2-0. From there, the momentum continued to swing heavily in the Mavericks' favor.
In the 31st minute. Freshman
Marin Johnson found the back of the net after a combination play involving
Ruthie Gyasi and
Meghan Sullivan, extending the Mavericks' advantage to 3-0. Minnesota State carried the lead into halftime, holding Minot to just one shot on goal in the opening 45 minutes.
The second half was much of the same, with MSU's defense, anchored by
Maclayne Menzel and
Kiera Laney. Goalkeeper
Lauren McAlpine turned aside two attempts from Minot in the second period to secure her fifth clean sheet of the season.
On the offensive end, the Mavericks' attack continued to click. In the 71st minute,
Sullivan capped off a strong individual performance by scoring MSU's fourth goal, finishing a setup from
Elan Litt. The scoring was rounded out in the 87th minute when
Anna Stromberg found the net, sealing a commanding 5-0 result.
"Great Sunday performance. 2nd game of a weekend is always tough. Minot also threw a different look at us early but our ladies responded to it very well. Composed and very smart soccer that allowed us to find quality chances early and often." Said head coach
Brian Bahl. "Another terrific collective defensive effort as well that really kept Minot from having any dangerous opportunities. Another shutout and some terrific goals. Really proud of the weekend our ladies had."
The Mavericks outshot Minot 22-6, including a 13-3 advantage in shots on goal.
With the win, Minnesota State improves its unbeaten record. The team will look to carry its momentum into next weekend as NSIC play continues. MSU will host Northern State on Friday at 3 p.m. and Jamestown on Sunday at 1 p.m.
