MANKATO, Minn. – The No. 5 Minnesota State (5-0, 2-0 NSIC) women's soccer team is heading into a weekend road trip against NSIC opponents, starting with a match against Jamestown (1-3-1, 1-1 NSIC) on Friday at 3:00 p.m., and closing against Northern State (2-1-1, 1-0-1 NSIC) at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
The Mavericks are coming off a successful 2-0 homestand, kicking off NSIC play. Against Minot State, Maddix Archer buried a long-distance goal in the 60th minute to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead, which they would not surrender. Lauren McAlpine held the Beavers off the scoresheet for her third shutout of the season to continue her strong start.
The Mavericks closed the weekend by beating UMary 3-0 in a match that saw them set a new season-high for goals. Amara Smith nailed a penalty shot and 40 seconds later Mila Rustin caught the goalkeeper out of position to give MSU two goals in the first four minutes. Teagan Jurek would add on a late goal in the first half for her first collegiate goal making it 3-0. The NSIC Defensive Player of the Week Maclayne Menzel and the rest of the defensive core blanked the Marauders offensive attack in the second half to secure the win. The win extended the winning streak to five to open the season, and McAlpine's shutout streak to four.
About Jamestown:
The Jimmies went 1-1 last weekend, beating Winona State 2-1 and losing to Concordia-St. Paul 4-1. Forward Juliet Lopez scored in both matches; she is tied for the team lead in goals with midfielder Bre Oettle who also scored against Winona State. Jamestown has had four goalkeepers play early on this season but Taylor Musser has played the most. She has made 25 saves so far while Kennedy Hansen has credit for the Jimmies only win.
Against Jamestown the Mavericks are 1-0 all-time. Last year in the first ever matchup, MSU won 2-0 at home with Meghan Sullivan and Ruthie Gyasi scoring the two goals. This will be the first ever match between the two teams at Charlotte & Gordon Hansen Stadium.
About Northern State:
The Wolves enter the match coming off a 1-0-1 NSIC road trip, drawing against Concordia-St. Paul 1-1, and defeating Winona State 3-2. Forwards Ella Johnson and Chloe Voss both scored against Winona State with Voss' being the game-winner. The two pace Northern State in goals with two apiece this season while Jaylee Hofer is tied with them in points with four. Goalkeeper Audrey Burns has allowed five goals so far, recording 11 saves, and one shutout.
Northern State has controlled the pace of play in most of their matches so far, outshooting opponents 52-37, and 23-17 in shots on net. They are coming off their strongest performance of the season in the win against Winona State.
The Mavericks are 17-1-4 all-time against the Wolves and are 7-0-3 in the last ten matchups. The last matchup saw Minnesota State blank Northern State 4-0 at The Pitch, ending a run of three straight draws in the series. The last time the Wolves won was in 2010, winning a 1-0 match in Aberdeen. The Mavericks are 8-1-1 all-time on the road against Northern State.
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