Beaver Fever Friday – Emma Mortensen – Soccer

No. 11 Beaver Soccer to host Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State

The No. 11 Bemidji State University soccer team is back at Chet Anderson Stadium this weekend as it continues Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play. The Beavers host University of Minnesota Duluth for a 3 p.m. match up Friday and welcome St. Cloud State University Sunday for a 1 p.m. tilt.

The Beavers are 8-0-1 overall and own a 5-0-1 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference record to sit tied with University of Mary (5-0-1) for second in the league standings behind Minot State University (6-0-0). BSU is led by Sara Wendt, who is tied for second in the country in goal scoring with a new career-best 11, which includes a league-best five game-winning goals, and an assist. Maggie Cade leads the team with a career-high five assists. Between the posts, Alyssa Stumbaugh has played the majority of time (508:27) and is 6-0-0 with a 0.71 goals allowed average and .833 save percentage with two shutouts. Georgiana Harber made an appearance in the Beavers’ last outing posting a save to preserve the victory and owns a 0.83 GAA and a .750 save percentage.

The Beavers are second in the NSIC averaging 2.33 goals per game, while allowing 0.89 goals per game to rank third in the league.

Bemidji State enters the weekend trailing Minnesota Duluth 6-16-5 in an al-time series that dates back to 1996, while the edge in the BSU-UMD series but is 3-4-3 when playing at Chet Anderson Stadium. Despite trailing in the all-time series, since 2015 the Beavers are unbeaten by the Bulldogs and carry a 3-0-2 record in those contests. The last time the teams met (9/22/19), Sara Wendt scored twice, while Allyssa Stumbaugh and Emma Riedi combined for a 2-1 victory between the posts and Griggs Field at Malosky Stadium in Duluth, Minn.

Minnesota Duluth enters the weekend in search of its first victory of 2021. At 0-8-1 overall and 0-5-1 in NSIC play, the Bulldogs have managed just four goals in nine matches to sit 14th in the NSIC averaging .444 goals per match, while they have surrendered 2.33 goals per outing. Emilia McGiffert leads UMD with two of the Bulldogs’ four goals this season, while Jackie Jares and Lauren Singstock are second on the team with three points on a goal and an assist. Sophia Grenz has appeared in all nine of the Bulldogs matches this fall and is 0-8-1 with a 2.41 goals against average and .727 save percentage.

Bemidji State enters the weekend trailing SCSU 9-10-2 in the all-time series but is 5-5-0 when playing at Chet Anderson Stadium. Since the 2016 campaign, BSU is unbeaten in five of six versus the Huskies. Which includes a 0-0 draw in the last regular-season meeting between the teams. The last time the teams met, Nov. 13, 2019 in Bemidji, Minn., SCSU got a goal early in the second half to defeat BSU and hand them a first-round exit from the NSIC Tournament. Jenna Dominguez was credited with the game-winning, while Claire Shea and Emma Van Donselaar recorded assists. The Huskies’ goalkeeper, Zoe Walsh, posted four saves in the shutout win.

WSC opens the weekend with a 3-3-2 overall record and is 3-1-2 in NSIC play. The Huskies travel to University of Minnesota Crookston for a Friday afternoon match prior to arriving in Bemidji, Minn. The Huskies rank eighth in the league averaging 1.250 goals per match, while they have allowed 1.00 to sit tied for fifth. Nicole Friis and Shea each have three goals this season to pace the SCSU attack Karlie Valdex and Ari Del moral lead the team with two assists apiece. Evie Kohn has played every second of the season for the Huskies in goal (760:00). She is 3-3-2 with a 0.95 goals against average and a 0.750 save percentage.