BROOKINGS, S.D. — A
Katelyn Beulke goal in the 54th minute broke a defensive deadlock, eventually leading to two more second-half South Dakota State goals, as the Jackrabbits completed a 3-0 victory over Kansas City in Summit League play on Sunday at Fishback Soccer Park.
The Jackrabbits were unable to capitalize during a first half that featured the Yellow and Blue primarily on the attack. SDSU outshot Kansas City by a 16-0 margin in the opening 45 minutes, but went into halftime scoreless.
SDSU finally found the back of the net nine minutes into the second half. The Jackrabbits took possession away from the Roos just past midfield, with
Stella Braddock passing the ball along to teammate
Ellie Gusman. The SDSU midfielder booted the ball past the Kansas City back line. Senior forward
Katelyn Beulke raced past the Roos defenders and gained possession at the top of the box. She swiftly struck a left-footed shot past the Kansas City goalkeeper, giving the Jacks a 1-0 lead.
The Jackrabbits extended their edge to 2-0 in the 62nd minute. A free kick opportunity led to
Mia Bosch connecting with
Hannah Langstaff who sent a cross into the box. Her ball found
Jenna Maloy who headed it into the net with ease.
Kansas City attempted to rally over the next 26 minutes. The second half saw South Dakota State goalkeeper
Mallorie Benhart make three saves as she the Jackrabbits kept the clean sheet intact.
SDSU's
Peyton Held put a cap to the scoring in the 88th minute. Langstaff pushed the ball ahead to
Adrianne Agbayani at midfield who led a counter attack opportunity. She found Held who gained control of the ball on the left side of the box. She worked to her right and hit a right-footed shot that found the inside of the opposite post to propel the Jackrabbits to a final 3-0 score.
South Dakota State improved to 7-3-3 on the season and 2-1-2 in Summit League competition following the victory. Kansas City dropped to 2-8-3 (1-2-2).
The Jackrabbits finished the meeting with a 26-5 edge in shots and 11-3 advantage in shots on goal. The shot total was SDSU's highest of the season. They also finished with a 7-1 margin in corner kicks.
Maloy improved her team-lead in goals to six on the season. Beulke picked up her fourth goal of the year while Held tallied her third. Braddock, Bosch and Gusman were all credited with assists as Langstaff led the way with two. Langstaff appeared for a team-high 78 minutes.
Gentry Williams led SDSU's defenders playing 72 minutes on the pitch as the Jacks completed the shutout performance.
South Dakota State improved to 9-2-2 all-time versus Kansas City and 6-0-0 at home against the Roos.
NOTES
- South Dakota State maintained its position atop Pod A of The Summit League standings following Sunday's results. SDSU leads the pod with eight points and is trailed by South Dakota (6), North Dakota State (5) and North Dakota (4). Oral Roberts is in first overall in the conference standings with 11 points.
- Four Jackrabbits have scored double-digits points this season. Bosch has a team-high 13 points and is followed by Maloy (12), Beulke (11) and Langstaff (10). The seven assists for Bosch this year put her up to 19 in her career which ranks third in a career in program history.
UP NEXT
South Dakota State goes on the road for its next two matches. The Jackrabbits first face St. Thomas on Thursday at 3 p.m. in St. Paul.
-GoJacks.com-