MANKATO, Minn. — No. 16 Minnesota State (2-0-0) won a hard fought two day long battle 1-0 against No. 10 Central Missouri (2-1-0) at The Pitch.
Callie Stanley scored at 84:06 to break a scoreless match with her first career collegiate goal. The teams each finished with 12 shots, and
Lauren McAlpine made five saves to complete the shutout.
"I'm incredibly proud of our ladies today. Central Missouri is an outstanding team and we knew this was going to be a battle from start to finish," said Head Coach
Brian Bahl. "We competed, stayed disciplined, organized and found a way to get a great result."
"It's another huge step forward for this team. We continue to grow each day and our development has been fun to watch, it's been such a great group to work with! This team continues to show that when we play together, believe in each other and compete with purpose, we're capable of doing great things."
The game kicked off on Friday with MSU creating the first stretch of pressure, getting shots from
Amara Smith,
Meghan Sullivan,
Teagan Jurek and
Maddix Archer, plus a corner kick, between the third and 18th minutes. Both teams traded looks and ball possession but ultimately remained deadlocked until the 22:50 mark in the first half when the match was suspended due to extreme weather conditions.
Once play was resumed on Saturday, McAlpine answered Central Missouri's early push with saves in the 23rd and 25th minutes, then added another stop in the 37th. The Jennies generated a corner kick and multiple high-danger shots late, but MSU held firm through the final minutes and the half ended 0-0.
MSU created several looks after halftime, including shots from Smith,
Addie Dobratz and Archer before Stanley forced goalkeeper Kristen Wright to make her first save in the 67th minute. Central Mo. pressured MSU through the middle of the half with two corners and multiple shots, but
Lauren McAlpine saved attempts by Mikayla Ernst at 71:16 and Kylie Richardson at 81:44 to keep the match scoreless. MSU answered with late pressure, getting a Stanley shot in the 80th minute and an Archer attempt saved at 83:23. Stanley finally broke through at the 84:06 mark with a shot that snuck past the sliding Jennies' goalkeeper, putting the Mavericks in front. Smith added another shot on goal after the tie-breaking goal as MSU closed out the half strong to maintain their 1-0 advantage, winning a thrilling dual between the two teams.
Stanley scored the game-winning goal and finished with three shots, including two on goal. McAlpine made five saves over 90 minutes and recorded the 19th shutout of her career.
Up next, the Minnesota State soccer team hosts No. 5 Grand Valley State on Sunday at 3 p.m. at The Pitch in Mankato, Minn.
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