MNSU soccer picks up two shutouts on the road

The No. 15 Minnesota State Mavericks moved to a record of 4-1 on the season after going 2-0 on their road trip last weekend. The headed up to play the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs on the 16th, then went down to play the St. Cloud Huskies on the 17th.

The Duluth game was a tight match, with both goaltenders playing outstanding defense. MSU’s Ryann Rydeen had four saves while UMD’s goaltender Ng Sisley racked up 10 saves. The UMD defense was pelted by shots, with MNSU putting up 12 in the first half and 18 in the second for 32 shots in regulation but could not slip any past Sisley. In contrast, the Minnesota Duluth offense did not help out their goaltender much at all, posting six shots in the first half and only four in the second.

The game required overtime, which is when MNSU’s Morgen Cottew scored at the 94:06 mark to win 1-0, with the assist coming from Taylor Kenealy. Cottew’s sixth shot, her third on goal, was the 25th goal of her career and sixth game winning goal in an offensive heavy day. Plenty of other Mavericks had great offensive showings, Lexi Pszanka recorded eight shots, two of which were on goal, while Jenny Hoerter had six shots. The Mavericks also showed their depth, with 10 players recording at least one shot and seven posting shots on goal. They proved that they can go to more than one or two players to get offensive production. The victory also marked the second win for MNSU goaltender Rydeen on a perfect season, giving UMD goaltender Sisley her first loss on the year (3-1).

In the second game of the weekend, the Mavericks were in control of the game much like they were against the Bulldogs. They beat the SCSU Huskies 1-0, this time around scoring at the 8:44 mark. The goal was scored unassisted by Alesha Duccini, off of a blocked cross. She was there to clean up the play with a goal, which was the ninth of the sophomore’s career.

After the goal, the Maverick defense set in, outlasting the Huskies, letting up only seven shots, two of which got to the goaltender. MNSU’s goaltender Taylor Livermore had an easy go of it, but the MNSU offense was not as aggressive as they were against UMD. The Mavericks put up 18 shots, five of which got to the goaltender. The Mavericks were led in shots by Duccini with four, who also led the team in shots-on-goal with three. The team showed depth again, with nine players recording at least one shot, and six shots coming from the team’s substitutes. MNSU goaltender Livermore moved to a record of 2-0, while SCSU’s goaltender Kelsey Christian dropped to 1-3 on the season.

Up next, the Mavericks continue their conference play with Sioux Falls on September 22 and Southwest Minnesota State on September 24. Of the two opponents, Sioux Falls will be the taller task but is a home game against the 3-2-1 squad. The Mavericks then head out to Marshall, Minnesota, where they face off against the winless SMSU squad for a what should be an easy road game.