SDSU OPENS ROAD TRIP WITH 3-1 VICTORY

Friday, October 7

St. Paul, Minn.

4:00 PM

South Dakota State University

8-0-5, 2-0-2

St. Thomas

6-4-3, 2-2-1

South Dakota St.

St. Thomas (MN)

Maya Hansen

Photo by: Nena C Photography

10/7/2022 6:32:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

By: Andrew Pedersen

ST. PAUL, Minn. – South Dakota State controlled the tempo from the opening whistle and came away from its matchup against St. Thomas with a 3-1 win on Friday, Oct. 7, in a Summit League women's soccer match at the Tommies' South Field.

The Jackrabbits dominated possession in the early going and had several opportunities in the opening moments of the contest. Maya Hansen received a breakaway pass from Hannah King and was denied on an attempt in the third minute. Avery Murdzek sent a strike at the net just three minutes later that was saved. Reagan Anderson nearly connected with Kayla Anderson on a dish and shot in the eighth minute, but the Tommies kept the Jackrabbits off the board.

It took until the clock had just seconds remaining for South Dakota State in the first half to take the lead.

A corner kick in the 45th minute set up by Laney Murdzek found its way into the box. A header chance by Delaney Grant was initially stopped, but Lauren Eckerle battled to the ball and struck it into the net to put the Jacks ahead at halftime. Eckerle's goal was the first of her collegiate career.

The first half featured an SDSU 13-3 edge in shots with six sent on goal.

Hansen put the game out of reach in the 47th minute for the Jacks. A pass from King put her in position to finesse her way towards goal. She dribbled just to the top of the box and sent a right-footed shot top shelf past the diving Tommie keeper to put SDSU ahead 2-0.

The Tommies cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 64th minute behind a free kick goal by Lissa Mizutani. St. Thomas put together one more shot to try to tie the score before the Jackrabbits notched a goal for a third time.

SDSU's Rachel Preston pushed a pass up field to Jenna Hallen who followed with a touch past the defense. Her pass found Abigail Kastens who maneuvered around the keeper and scored her second goal of the season as the clock hit 78 minutes.

The Jacks kept the Tommies off the scoreboard for the final 12 minutes of play to pick up their first win ever on the St. Thomas campus.

Notes
SDSU improved to 8-0-5 overall and 2-0-2 in The Summit League. St. Thomas dropped to 6-4-3 (2-2-1). The Jackrabbits were led in goal by Jocelyn Tanner's three saves during the second half. Hailee Fischer recorded two saves in the first half. Hansen had seven total shots, Avery Murdzek had five, while the duo each had three on goal. King's assist was the first of her Jackrabbit tenure and Hallen's was the first for her this season. Preston played a team-high 81 minutes and Hayley Lindaman followed her at 77 minutes.

Up Next
The Jackrabbits continue their road trip on Sunday, Oct. 9, when they face Western Illinois in Macomb at 1 p.m.

-GoJacks.com-