South Dakota State soccer defeated Oral Roberts University (ORU) 2-0 in the Summit League Women’s Soccer Championship game on Sunday. SDSU will now enter the NCAA Tournament and take on the Iowa Hawkeyes.
ORAL ROBERTS
Ellie Gusman scored the first goal in the eighth minute of play. Following the goal, ORU was shown three yellow cards within six minutes. In total, ORU out-fouled SDSU 9-2 throughout the first half. The Golden Eagles got three shots in the rest of the first period, but none connected. Adrianne Agbayani added to the score in minute 72. ORU attempted a pair of shots late, but both were saved by Mallorie Benhart, giving the Jacks their third consecutive Summit League title.
Gusman and Jenna Maloy led the Jacks offense with two shots each. Four other Jackrabbit players shot once each for the eight-shot total. Benhart made four saves on the afternoon. Genesis Helsley was the only Golden Eagle with multiple shots, having two on goal. Goalkeeper Eirini Manoukaraki made no saves; it was her second no-save game since playing the University of Arkansas Little Rock two months ago.
IOWA
SDSU will play the No. 5 seeded University of Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Tournament. The Hawkeyes have an 11-4-4 record and a 6-2-3 record in the Big Ten. They finished third in conference record and ended up taking a loss to the University of Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. They earned an at-large bid for the NCAA tournament.
Freshman Liana Tarasco and graduate student Kenzie Roling lead the Hawkeyes offense with 36 shots each. Tarasco has 17 shots on goal with four goals and two assists, while Roling has 15 shots on goal with three goals.
Graduate student Kelli McGroarty has the third-most shots on the team with 35 and leads the Hawkeyes in goals with six.
Junior midfielder Sofia Bush has provided the most assists this season with six, while adding 26 shots and scoring one goal. The goalkeeping tandem of graduate student Taylor Kane and sophomore Fernanda Mayrink have combined for 56 saves this season.
Game time is set for Friday at 5 p.m. in Iowa City and will be streamed on ESPN+.
