South Dakota State took two more wins in their nonconference slate over Wayne State and Oregon State.
Wayne State
A dominating effort by the Jacks propelled them to their first home victory of the season.
Mia Bosch was first to find the net only three and a half minutes into the game. Just over 24 minutes in and it was Avery LeBlanc next to score, making it a 2-0 lead going into the halfway break. Katelyn Beulke and Jenna Hallen each put up a goal in the waning minutes of the second half to make it 4-0 once time expired.
Hailee Christensen led the Jacks with seven shots, four of them on goal. Katherine Jones had five shots on the night while Katelyn Beulke was not far behind with four. Both the Murdzek twins and Jenna Hallen had three shots each. Jackrabbit players combined for 34 shots and 18 shots on goal.
The Wildcats were unable to produce a shot, marking the first time the Jacks kept an opponent shotless for an entire game.
“It really shows a commitment collectively to defend,” head coach Brock Thompson said of the Jacks’ performance. “We talk a lot about our defenders and we’re really proud of them, but we strive to be the best team in the country in the moment the ball’s lost.”
Oregon State
The Beavers showed a robust performance against the Jacks. But it was not enough for them to snag victory.
After a scoreless 23 minutes, Hayden Wilson for the Beavers kicked one into the net past Stephanie Leckwold. Valerie Tobias scored in the 35th minute to make it a 2-0 lead.
The Jacks were not going to enter the halfway break scoreless, as Avery Murdzek found the back of the net in the 44th minute.
“Avery’s goal off of the rebound was certainly needed,” Thompson said of their first goal of the game.
Senior defender Juju Barker for the Beavers was given a yellow card for unsporting in the 59th minute, giving the Jacks a penalty kick to work with. Kaycee Manding booted it in to tie the game. Avery LeBlanc scored during the 61st minute to give the Jacks the lead and the eventual victory.
Jackrabbit players combined for 20 shots with Avery Murdzek handling five. Lauren Eckerle put up four shots, followed by Adrianne Agbayani with three. Beaver players totaled 13 shots, with Katie Godden leading the team with four. Senior fielder Carly Carraher, graduate midfielder Valerie Tobias, and junior defender Megin Turi each had two shots.
“The biggest thing that I was really proud of was the way Oregon State played gave us some problems,” Thompson said, “And one of the things that we were a little bit unsure of as a staff was, do we need to change to deal with their problems. And when presented that…[some of the leaders on the team] were committed to just being us, and being us the best we could.”
Both wins propel the Jacks to a 6-2-1 record.
University of South Carolina Upstate
University of South Carolina Upstate will be the Jacks’ final opponent before Summit League play begins. The Spartans enter this contest with a 3-2-2 record, coming off a scoreless draw at home against Wofford College. They are 2-2 on the road this season.
Nya Baccelli and Dara Russo both lead the Spartans in scoring with four goals each. Both players have had over 400 minutes on the field. Baccelli has
attempted 20 shots so far this season while Russo has 22. The Spartans are 11.8% of their shots going into the net with just under 40% of their shots being on goal.
The game is scheduled to start Thursday at 7 p.m. at Fishback Soccer Park and will be streamed on the Summit League Network through Midco Sports Plus.
