JACKRABBITS FACE MAVERICKS IN SEMIFINALS

Thursday, April 15

Omaha, Neb.

5 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Omaha

Photo by: Miranda Sampson/Sampson Snapshots

4/14/2021 6:42:00 AM | Women's Soccer

GAME 17: South Dakota State (12-0-4, 12-0-4) vs. Omaha (8-4-4, 8-4-4)

When	Thursday, April 15 - 5 p.m.
Where	Caniglia Field \| Omaha, Neb.
Live Video	TheSummitLeague.org
Live Stats	OMavs.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| #RabbitsFutbol

South Dakota State women's soccer takes its six-game winning streak into The Summit League Women's Championships. As the No. 2 seed, the Jackrabbits will face Omaha in the semifinals April 15 in Omaha, Nebraska.

The Jacks have not lost a game this season, standing at 12-0-4. Coming into the tournament, State looks for a second consecutive and sixth overall conference tournament title.

SDSU holds a 7-5-5 all-time record in the Summit League Championships.

About the Jackrabbits
In 14 matches played in 2021, the Jacks have held strong defensively, recording 11 shutouts and allowing just five goals this season. SDSU ranks fifth in the nation in goals against average with .299 and is 13th in shutout percentage (.688).

Three Jackrabbits have appeared between the pipes this season.

Taylor Lock is 9-0-1 as she has appeared in all 16 games this season. Lock has 16 saves on 67 shots faced. Hailee Fischer has 14 saves in nine games played and did not allow a goal this season. Jocelyn Tanner has played in the last eight games for the Jacks, recording 15 saves on 341 shots faced without allowing a goal. The trio has combined for 47 saves and a .904 save percentage, which ranks 10th in the nation.

Offensively, Maya Hansen added to her total goals in Fargo with two scores, increasing her season total to seven. Hansen is tied for the team lead and tied for second in the Summit League in goals scored. Hansen is one of three players in the conference to record a hat trick this season after finding the net three times vs. Kansas City March 5. Thirteen of Hansen's 27 shots have been on goal this season.

Another scoring threat for the Jacks is Kayla Wisniewski. A transfer from Purdue Fort Wayne, Wisniewski has made an immediate impact with the team. Wisniewski emerged to claim a share of the team lead in goals after recording a hat trick April 11 at Western Illinois. Wisniewski scored twice during the weekend series vs. Oral Roberts Feb. 26 & 28, and scored twice in the two games vs. South Dakota. Thirteen of her 22 shot attempts have been on goal this season.

Eden Brooker has four goals and three assists in 16 games played in 2021. Brooker scored twice in the series vs. North Dakota, including a golden goal in the second overtime April 2. Seven other Jackrabbits have scored a goal this season, including Katherine Jones, Kayla Anderson and Avery LeBlanc who each recorded their first collegiate goals. Anderson hit her second goal of the season April 4 against North Dakota.

In addition to her team-leading five assists, Rachel Hewitt recorded 15 of her 22 shots of the season in the first five games. The senior fired five shots in a game twice against Omaha (Feb. 15) and Oral Roberts (Feb. 28). Twelve of Hewitt's shots have been on goal. Altogether, 14 Jackrabbits have recorded at least one assist.

SDSU has attempted 203 shots with 90 of them being on goal. Thirteen Jackrabbits have recorded at least four shot attempts so far on the season.

State outscored its opponents 29-8 in 2019 and had a Summit League record 15 shutouts, ranking third nationally in shutout percentage. The Jackrabbits averaged 14.3 shots per contest, putting 126 of their 314 total efforts on goal. Defensively, SDSU limited opponents to 10.4 shots per game and allowed only nine goals for the season, including five in the final 17 games.

SDSU returns six starters from last season.

Returning for the Jacks is the reigning Summit League Freshman of the Year Maya Hansen. A sophomore from Savage, Minnesota, Hansen finished second on the team in points (18) and goals (seven), along with four assists in her first season as a Jackrabbit. Hansen posted five game-winning goals in 2019 and started 20 games for the Jacks. Hansen earned spots on the All-Summit League Second Team and the Summit League All-Freshman Team in 2019.

Karlee Manding enters her junior year with the Jackrabbits after making the 2019 All-Summit League Second Team in 2019 and the Summit League All-Freshman Team in 2018. The midfielder from Waipahu, Hawaii has 23 career points and nine career goals over 2,000 career minutes. Karlee and her sister Kaycee have combined for 11 shots, four assists and six points this season.

SDSU brings back all three of its line of defenders to give the Jacks experience defensively. Kaitlin Zabel was a member of the 2019 All-Summit League First team while Gabby Vivier-Hannay was named to the 2019 All-Summit League Second Team. A senior from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Vivier-Hannay earned Summit League Defensive Player of the Week honors after playing 177 minutes in the two shutout wins at Oral Roberts back on Feb. 26 & 28.

Scouting the Mavericks
Since tying with the Jacks in the first two games of the season, Omaha has three series sweeps, has been swept twice and finished with two more draws.

The Mavericks went six consecutive games without a loss to open March, but ended the month with two losses against Denver. In its final series of the season, Omaha tied and defeated Western Illinois.

Omaha is outscoring teams 20-12 this season and has 186 shot attempts (75 on goal).

Sophia Green leads the team in goals with six while Andrea Daves and Hannah Heinemann each have five goals. Four Mavericks have scored a single goal this season. Green is the conference leader in shots per game (2.31).

Mia Olesen has 25 saves in 10 games played between the pipes. Madeline Smith adds 10 saves. Both have allowed six goals.

All-Time Series
South Dakota State leads the all-time series 6-7-3, including two scoreless draws to start the season. The Jacks fell to the Mavericks in the 2018 Summit League Championship Semifinals by a score of 3-1.

Dana J. Dykhouse "Futbol" Stadium
Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium played host to the SDSU soccer program this season for six games due to poor field conditions at Fishback Soccer Park. Before 2021, State's contest vs. Eastern Washington on Sept. 13, 2019 was moved to the stadium due to wet field conditions at Fishback Soccer Park. The Jacks defeated Eastern Washington in that game, 1-0.

South Dakota State made its 2021 Fishback Soccer Park debut in its final home series of the spring season, winning both games against North Dakota.

Last Time Out (April 11, 2021)
MACOMB, Ill. – South Dakota State women's soccer defeated Western Illinois 3-0 on Sunday behind Kayla Wisniewski's hat trick.

The Jackrabbits finished regular season play unbeaten with a record of 12-0-4. State finished second in the league, while Denver captured the regular season title.

In addition to Wisniewski's trio of goals, she led SDSU with three shots, while five other Jacks recorded one shot in the contest. Kayla Anderson was credited with two assists and Maya Hansen, Eden Brooker and Taylor Lock each had one assist.

Western Illinois held a 10-8 advantage in shots, but State recorded six shots on target compared to the Leathernecks' two. Lock and Jocelyn Tanner split time in net for SDSU and posted one save each.

Wisniewski opened the scoring with a goal in the 23rd minute. On a failed corner kick clearance by WIU, Brooker passed the ball to Hansen who sent a cross to Wisniewski in the middle of the box who's one touch found the bottom left corner of the net.

In the 82nd minute, Lock's punt found Kayla Anderson who sent a quick pass to Wisniewski. The junior dribbled into the box and fired a shot past WIU's keeper.

Minutes later, Kayla Anderson found an open Wisniewski who completed the hat trick on a breakaway in the 86th minute.

Defensive Dominance
The Jacks have not allowed more than three goals in 51 consecutive regular season games, dating back to the 2018 season. In that span, State has recorded 36 shutouts.

Overtime Thrillers
Seven of South Dakota State's 16 games have been decided in overtime this season. After tying its opening two games at Omaha, the Jacks tied Denver March 12 and won 2-1 in double overtime March 14.

Eden Brooker's golden goal lifted the Jacks in the second overtime in the win over North Dakota April 2. State had just one tie in the 2019 regular season in addition to defeating Denver on penalty kicks in the Summit League Women's Soccer Championship.

Three is the Magic Number
Before the season, just six Jackrabbits in program history reached the feat of a hat trick in a game. In a matter of six weeks, two more were added to the list during the 2021 season.

Maya Hansen had the first back on March 5 against Kansas City, netting goals in the sixth, 18th and 85th minute in a 4-0 win.

Kayla Wisniewski joined the exclusive group April 11 at Western Illinois by scoring all three of SDSU's goals (23', 81' and 86').

-GoJacks.com-