Jacks open Summit League Championship Thursday

Thursday, November 1

Brookings, S.D.

3 p.m.

South Dakota State University

#4 seed Omaha

Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia

10/29/2018 1:05:00 PM | Women's Soccer

GAME 19: #1 seed South Dakota State (12-5-1, 7-1) vs. #4 seed Omaha (7-10-2, 4-3-1)

When	Thursday, Nov. 1 \| 3 p.m.
Where	Fishback Soccer Park \| Brookings, S.D.
Live Video	The Summit League \| Jon Hiatt (Play-by-Play) and Mekonnen Afa (Analyst)
Live Stats	GoJacksLive.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| Denver \| North Dakota State \| Omaha \| The Summit League
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| #RabbitsFutbol

Previewing the Week
South Dakota State earned the No. 1 seed in this week's Summit League Women's Soccer Championship, and kicks off the tournament at 3 p.m. Thursday in a semifinal bout with No. 4 seed Omaha at Fishback Soccer Park. Thursday's action concludes with a 6 p.m. contest between No. 2 seed Denver and No. 3 seed North Dakota State.

The championship game is set for noon on Saturday, with the winner earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

SDSU finished the regular season 12-5-1 overall with a 7-1 mark in league play, sitting tied with Denver atop the standings with 21 points. The Jacks' 1-0 win over the Pioneers Oct. 7 gave South Dakota State the tie-breaker for the top seed in 2018, and the right to host next year's tournament as well.

The Jackrabbits are making their sixth consecutive appearance in the league tournament and have qualified 10 times out of 11 eligible seasons in the league. South Dakota State has now won six regular season titles, claiming at least a share of the regular season crown in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014, 2017 and 2018. SDSU has won the title outright three times.

Scouting the Jackrabbits
SDSU (12-5-1, 7-1) clinched the top seed in this week's tournament after a 2-1 double-overtime victory last Friday at North Dakota, edging the Fighting Hawks in the 110th minute of action.

State has outscored its opponents 24-13 on the year and has 11 shutouts as a team, matching the program record for single-season shutouts. The Jackrabbits are averaging 15.8 shots per game, putting 112 of their 284 total attempts on goal. South Dakota State is limiting Summit League opponents to 7.1 shots per game and has allowed just three goals in league play.

Leah Manuleleua leads the Jackrabbits with 13 points on the year, netting five goals with three assists. Karlee Manding, who has missed the last four games due to injury, is second on the team with five goals and two assists (12 points). Marisa Schulz, who scored Friday's first goal and assisted on the game-winner, has two assists and is even with Abigail Kastens with three goals each. Hannah Evans, Bianca Madonia, Stephanie Dashiell and Darien Poelstra have all found the back of the net twice in 2018, with Poelstra netting Friday's game-winner.

Carina McLennan (seven points) leads all Jacks with five assists, Annie Williams and Schulz have set up two scores and four others have one assist.

Defensively, Evans, Williams, Alexa Hepner and Kaitlin Zabel have started all 18 games for a Jackrabbit back line that has allowed just 11 goals this season. Zabel leads the team with 1,583 minutes played, just ahead of Williams' 1,559 and Hepner's 1,542 minutes.

Maggie Smither has started every game at goalkeeper for SDSU and holds a 0.60 goals against average. She has allowed three goals in Summit League play and for the season has played over 1,658 minutes with 10 shutouts.

Scouting the Pioneers
Denver (11-5-2, 7-1 Summit League) wrapped up its regular season Saturday with a 3-0 victory over Oral Roberts to earn a share of the regular season crown with South Dakota.

The Pioneers enter the week with a 31-14 lead in goals against opponent this year and an 18-5 advantage in league play goals, scoring two or more times in eight contests this year. DU is averaging 15.2 shots per game and holding opponents to 9.6 attempts on average.

Samantha Feller (eight goals, two assists), Hannah Adler (six goals, six assists) and Meg Halvorson (six goals, three assists) lead the Pioneer offense with 18, 1 and 15 points, respectively. Natalie Beckman (11 point) has a team-high nine assists to go with a goal and Camryn MacMillan is in double-figure points as well with four goals and a pair of assists.

Brittany Wilson has played all available minutes (1,705:05) at goalkeeper for Denver this year, allowing 14 goals with 66 saves for a 0.74 goals against average.

South Dakota State is 5-1-2 all-time against Denver and earlier this season topped the Pioneers in overtime, 1-0.

Scouting the Bison
North Dakota State (9-6, 6-2 Summit League) clipped South Dakota, 1-0, in last week's regular season finale, and has dropped only two Summit League contests this season, falling to Denver and Oral Roberts.

The Bison have outscored opponents 22-18 on the year and are averaging 14.9 shots per contest, holding a narrow lead over opponents in average shots per game, allowing 13.4 attempts.

Mariah Haberle has scored seven goals and assisted on two more to lead the Bison offense with 16 points, while Holly Enderle has 11 points (four goals, three assists). Hannah Norman (four goals), Malley O'Brien (three goals,two assists) and Roxy Roemer (eight assists) all have eight points for NDSU.

Monica Polgar has played all 1,386 minutes between the pipes for NDSU and has a 1.17 goals against average. She has 68 saves on the year and has allowed 18 goals.

South Dakota State is 11-10-3 all-time against North Dakota State. The Jackrabbits claimed a 4-0 victory at home during the 2017 regular season but have dropped the last two matchups against the Bison, falling 2-0 in last year's Summit League semifinals and 1-0 earlier this year in Fargo, North Dakota.

Scouting the Mavericks
Omaha (7-10-2, 4-3 Summit League) earned the final spot in this year's Summit League tournament with a 2-1 victory over Western Illinois in the season finale. The Mavericks are making their first-ever appearance in the championship.

Omaha has been outscored by opponents, 24-14, on the year but has evened that margin (8-8) in league play. The Mavericks are averaging 10.9 shots per contest while giving up 13.1 attempts per game.

Bailey Cascio (four goals, three assists) is the lone double-figure point scorer for Omaha with 11 on the year, while Andrea Daves has a goal and six assists (eight points). Emily Romero has found the back of the net three times as well.

Erin Bunker (1.19 goals against average) and Ina Gudjonsdottir (1.27 goals against average) have split time at keeper this year, with Bunker starting 11 contests and Gudjonsdottir starting eight. Bunker has allowed 13 goals with 44 saves and Gudjonsdottir has 37 saves with 11 goals allowed.

South Dakota State is 5-6-1 all-time against Omaha but has a 5-2 mark in Division I play, including a At home against the Mavericks, SDSU is 4-2-1.

Jackrabbits Honored by Summit League
South Dakota State has earned four Summit League Player of the Week honors this season.

Leah Manuleleua was named the Summit League's Offensive Player of the Week Aug. 27. It was the third time in her career she's earned the league's weekly honor. She helped the Jacks to a perfect 2-0 record at home last weekend, thanks in part to a seven-point showing against Wayne State Friday that included the ninth hat trick in the program's history. Manuleleua became the first to score three or more goals in a game for SDSU since Diana Potterveld did it in 2012.
Maggie Smither was named the Summit League's Defensive Player of the Week Sept. 17. Smither started all three games at goalkeeper for the Jackrabbits last week and posted a 1-1-1 record with a pair of shutouts. She tallied 21 saves overall and finished the week with an 0.62 goals against average while facing 50 total shots.
Smither picked up her second weekly award Oct. 8. Smither started and played all available minutes in a 1-0 shutout victory over Denver, recording six saves in a hotly contested slugfest that went to double overtime.
Annie Williams earned Defensive Player of the Week honors Oct. 23. Williams started both games and was a key cog in a defensive unit that did not allow a goal over 180 minutes and surrendered only eight shots. Additionally, Williams added an assist on the game-winner against Oral Roberts.

Smither Climbing Charts
South Dakota State's junior goalkeeper Maggie Smither has made her way into the top five of several career record lists (not including average categories) in the midst of her third season playing with the Jacks:

Career Saves
Rk	Saves	Name	Years
1	269	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
2	267	Brittany Frazier	2001-04
3	215	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
4	202	Jenn Davis	2003-06
5	200	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

Career Wins
Rk	Wins	Name	Years
1	31	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
2	30	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
	30	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

Career Ties
Rk	Ties	Name	Years
1	8	Maggie Smither	2015-18
2	7	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
3	6	Two tied

Career Shutouts
Rk	Shutouts	Name	Years
1	21	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
2	20.8	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
3	19.1	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

Career Goalie Games Played
Rk	Games	Name	Years
1	68	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
2	59	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
3	56	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

Career Goalie Games Played
Rk	Starts	Name	Years
1	51	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
	51	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
3	46	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

Career Goalie Minutes Played
Rk	Mins	Name	Years
1	5363	Nicole Inskeep	2013-16
2	5055	Nicole Lograsso	2005-08
3	4381	Maggie Smither	2016-pres.

On the Defensive
With just 11 goals allowed this season, South Dakota State is in the midst of one of its best defensive seasons in history, allowing 0.61 goals per match with a 0.58 goals per 90 minutes average. Those numbers rank second-best in school history. Additionally, the last two years under head coach Brock Thompson has seen the Jackrabbits allow 28 goals in nearly 3,500 minutes of action (0.83 goals/90 minutes), a top mark of SDSU's team history.

Goals Allowed/Game (Single-Season)
Year	Games	Mins	GA	GA/Game	GA/90
2003	19	1860	10	0.53	0.48
2018	18	1694	11	0.61	0.58
2016	21	2021	15	0.71	0.67
2008	21	1942	16	0.76	0.74
2013	18	1677	14	0.78	0.75

Goals Allowed/Game (Two-Year Total)
Years	Games	Mins	GA	GA/Game	GA/90
2017-18	37	3465	28	0.76	0.73
2016-17	40	3792	32	0.8	0.76
2007-08	38	3572	31	0.82	0.78
2010-11	39	3710	33	0.85	0.8
2015-16	42	3984	38	0.9	0.86

Jackrabbit Quick Hits

South Dakota State's seniors own a 45-23-11 record over the last four years, including a 25-5-2 mark in Summit League play with two tournament championships, two regular season titles and a pair of trips to the NCAA Tournament thus far.
The Jackrabbits' victory over South Dakota gave the program 10 wins for the sixth-consecutive season. The program has reached the 10-win mark 12 times in its history and 10 times since joining The Summit League.
South Dakota State's 11-match league winning streak from Sept. 29, 2017 to Oct. 11, 2018 was the longest in the Summit League's history. The previous record was also held by SDSU, set between the 2012 and 2013 seasons.
With a 5-4-1 mark, the Jackrabbits secured a .500 or better mark in nonleague play for the seventh time since joining The Summit League in 2007.
South Dakota State is 22-16-43 all-time in overtime matches with a 3-0-1 mark in four overtime games this year.
13 Jackrabbits have recorded a point this season, already matching last year's total.
SDSU is 5-12-2 all-time in season openers and 7-10-2 all-time in home openers.
South Dakota State has won six consecutive Summit League openers after its 2-1 win over Purdue Fort Wayne and is 11-1 all-time in those contests.
The Jackrabbits played a trio of Power Five schools this season in Iowa State, Kansas and Arizona State. All-time against schools from the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-10, SEC and ACC, the Jacks are a combined 4-26-5. Three of those wins and two ties have come against Iowa State.

Home Cooking
Brookings has been good to the Jackrabbits, as South Dakota State boasts a 103-41-18 all-time home record, including tournament games at Fishback Soccer Park.

Since moving to The Summit League in 2007, the Jackrabbits are 76-22-11 at home. Although the program saw an 11-match home unbeaten streak come to an end in the nonconference season, the Jackrabbits are now 15-2-1 at Fishback Soccer Park under head coach Brock Thompson.

Specific to Summit League play, the Jackrabbits are 44-3-2 all-time in home league games and have lost only one home Summit League game since 2010.

Jacks Tabbed Second in Preseason Poll
South Dakota State women's soccer was picked second in the 2018 Summit League Preseason Coaches Poll, released Aug. 13. The Jackrabbits received 57 total points in the rankings with three first-place votes, finishing four tallies shy of Denver for the top spot. Oral Roberts was picked third in the poll with 49 points, just ahead of North Dakota State's 46. The next three spots were separated by just three points, with newcomer North Dakota sitting fifth (30), South Dakota sixth (29) and Omaha seventh (28). Purdue Fort Wayne and Western Illinois tied for the final spot with 12 points each.

Four Named as Players to Watch
As part of the Summit League's preseason poll release, four Jackrabbits were named to the league's Players to Watch List: Maggie Smither, Annie Williams, Leah Manuleleua and Alexa Hepner.

Maggie Smither, last season's Summit League Goalkeeper of the Year, posted a 0.86 goals against average in 2017 and tallied 83 saves. She allowed only one goal in league play and recorded six shutouts, finishing the year with an 11-5-3 record between the pipes.
Annie Williams is the returning Summit League Defensive Player of the Year and will serve as team captain for the Jackrabbits in 2018. She started all 19 games a year ago, played 1,556 minutes and was third on the team with eight points.
Alexa Hepner is a third-year starter for a back line that surrendered just one goal in league play last year. The Prior Lake, Minnesota native logged the most minutes (1,721) for the second-consecutive season. She was a 2017 All-Summit Second Team honoree.
Leah Manuleleua enters her second season with the Jackrabbits after arriving in 2017 from San Joaquin Delta College. Manuleleua started 18 contests last season and tied for the team lead in goals (seven). She was an All-Summit League First Team pick last year.

2017 In Review
The Jackrabbits made their fifth consecutive appearance in the league tournament and have qualified nine times out of 10 eligible seasons in the league. South Dakota State has now won five regular season titles, claiming the regular season nod in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2014 as well.

Nicole Hatcher (21 points, seven assists) and Leah Manuleleua (17 points, three assists) tied for the team-lead with seven goals each, while Annie Williams finished third on the team in points (eight) with three goals and two assists. Freshmen Rachel Hewitt and Marisa Schulz each netted two goals.

Between the pipes, Maggie Smither started 18 games with appearances in all 19 contests on the year, posting a 0.86 goals against average while ending the regular season with six consecutive shutouts. Smither logged 83 saves in 1,582 minutes. Taylor Lock appeared in five contests and spent 99 minutes in goal, giving up one score with five saves.

-GoJacks.com-