Jackrabbits, Bulldogs meet Friday

Friday, September 6

Des Moines, Iowa

5 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Drake

Photo by: Andrew Sogn/SDSU Sports Information

9/4/2019 9:48:00 AM | Women's Soccer

GAMES 5: South Dakota State (2-2) at Drake (0-4)

When	Friday, Sept. 6 \| 5 p.m.
Where	Cownie Soccer Complex \| Des Moines, Iowa
Live Video	ESPN+ / WatchESPN
Live Stats	GoDrakeBulldogs.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| #RabbitsFutbol

South Dakota State women's soccer wraps up a three-game stretch of road dates this weekend with a Friday matchup at Drake. The Jackrabbits and Bulldogs kick at 5 p.m. from Cownie Soccer Complex in Des Moines, Iowa in SDSU's lone game of the weekend, though a Tuesday home contest against Hawaii looms.

SDSU dropped a pair of games last weekend at Creighton and Kansas State, moving to 2-2 on the season. The Jackrabbits opened the year with wins over Utah State and Idaho State at home and are coming off their second-straight Summit League regular season title. 17 returners dot the 2019 Jackrabbit roster, and through four games, 23 different Jackrabbits have seen the pitch.

South Dakota State's top five scorers from 2018 return, including Leah Manuleleua (14 points) and Karlee Manding (12 points), who each had five goals. Team captain Carina McLennan added five assists and a pair of goals, while Marisa Schulz and Abigail Kastens found the net three times each.

Those offensive leaders picked up where they left off in the 2019 opening weekend, as Manuleleua (two scores) and Manding (one goal) each found the net. Schulz had two assists on the weekend and Maya Hansen added one. Manuleleua currently leads the squad with 12 total shots on the year, with Hansen close behind at seven, including two on goal. Kastens and Manuleleua have put five shots on target apiece.

Maggie Smither (24 saves, two shutouts), Kaitlin Zabel (35 consecutive starts), Rachel Preston and Gabby Vivier-Hannay have started all four games for SDSU's defense. Vivier-Hannay has logged all 360 available minutes on the field through four games, with Preston second on the team with 349 minutes played. Zabel is third at 347.

A Look Across the Pitch
Drake (0-4) is winless through two weeks of the season, but has gone against a pair of power five schools and unbeaten Denver (in addition to Saint Louis last Sunday). The Bulldogs have yet to find the net in 2019, though Annie Schmitz, Erika Townley and Alison Walls have each fired three shots. Defensively, Drake has allowed eight goals (2.0 per game). Kelsie Stone (four starts) has logged 351 minutes between the pipes, posting 16 saves while facing 55 total shots.

Last Time Out
The Jackrabbits look to bounce back into the winner's column this week after 1-0 and 2-0 losses at Creighton and Kansas State, respectively. SDSU battled all evening with Creighton, but a red card in the 60th left State short-handed and Creighton capitalized. The Jacks nearly found equalizers in the 81st, 89th and 90th minutes, but a comeback wasn't in the cards as the Bluejays hung on. KState took advantage of a 45th minute goal in the first half, added another early in the second and played keepaway the rest of the afternoon Sunday to keep SDSU off the board.

For the weekend, Leah Manuleleua has five shots to lead the offense, while Maya Hansen added three.

Smither has nine saves against Creighton and 16 for the weekend, playing into the second half against the Wildcats before Taylor Lock entered. Lock had three saves to finish the game.

A Pattern of Success
South Dakota State's defensive prowess, senior leadership and nonleague success since joining the Summit League has produced a trend of conference play (and overall season) success. In total, the Jackrabbits' 67 league wins (and .787 league winning percentage) is the top mark among Summit League teams, dating back to 2008.

On the Defensive. Last year's squad allowed just 14 goals for the season, posting the third-best goals against average (0.71) in school history. That played into a two-year GAA of 0.78 (2017-18), the second-best mark at SDSU. The Jackrabbits have put together back-to-back seasons of 1.00 or fewer goals allowed per 90 minutes (game) three times, including the last three seasons (2016-17, 2017-18). Maggie Smither and Kaitlin Zabel bring the most experience to the 2018 defensive unit and will look to continue that trend. So far in 2019, the Jackrabbit defense has produced a pair of clean sheets and allowed three goals (0.75 per game).
Four-Year Senior Records. South Dakota State's senior class boasts a 35-20-8 record over the last three years, including a 19-4-0 mark in Summit League play with a tournament championship, two regular season titles and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. If SDSU reaches double-digit wins for the seventh-year in a row, that senior class will finish no lower than tied for fourth in the SDSU record books for most class wins. Last year's group finished with 45 victories, the third-most in school history. 49 wins is the best four-year mark (2008-11).
Nonleague Success. The Jackrabbits have posted a plus-.500 record in league play seven times since joining the Summit League, including three of the last four years. The Jackrabbits will host five nonleague opponents in 2019 at Fishback Soccer Park with six contests on the road. So far in 2019, the Jacks are 2-2 in nonleague play.

Home Cooking
Brookings has been good to the Jackrabbits, as South Dakota State boasts a 105-42-18 all-time home record, including tournament games at Fishback Soccer Park. Head Coach Brock Thompson, now in his third season, has a 17-3-1 mark at Fishback Soccer Park

Since moving to The Summit League in 2007, the Jackrabbits are 78-23-11 at home. SDSU is 44-3-2 against Summit League opponents and has lost just one home league contest since 2010.

Smither nets WPSL honors
South Dakota State's Maggie Smither was announced as the Women's Professional Soccer League's 2019 Central Region Northern Conference Defensive Player of the Year. She also earned the region's Golden Glove award for top keeper.

Smither spent the summer with Mankato United Soccer Club, helping the team to a 6-1-3 record in its inaugural season. She logged time in 10 contests, allowing just four goals with 13 saves, posting a 1.00 goals against average for the squad.

The two-time Summit League Goalkeeper of the Year was one of 10 Jackrabbits to compete in the WPSL this summer, joining Marisa Schulz, MaKayla Griffin, Rachel Preston, Taylor Lock, Eden Brooker, Adalaide Kline, Cecilia Limongi, Shayna Stubbs and Sunniva Dunagan.

Jacks Tabbed Second in Preseason Poll
The Jackrabbit women's soccer program was tabbed second in the 2019 Summit League Preseason Coaches Poll, released early August. South Dakota State garnered 57 points in the rankings with a pair of first-place votes, just behind top vote-getter Denver (63 points, five first-place votes). Those two were widely separated from the rest of the pack, as North Dakota State (41), Omaha (39) and South Dakota (37) rounded out the top five. The final four spots were held by North Dakota (32), Oral Roberts (31), Purdue Fort Wayne (14) and Western Illinois (10).

Smither, Manuleleua Named Players to Watch
SDSU's Maggie Smither and Leah Manuleleua were recognized as Players to Watch by the Summit League as part of their preseason release. Smither is the two-time defending Summit League Goalkeeper of the Year, while Manuleleua returns for her senior season after leading the Jacks in points (14) last year.

-GoJacks.com-