SDSU soccer rolls past Western Illinois

MACOMB, Ill. (SDSU) — South Dakota State took control early and never wavered as the Jackrabbits defeated Western Illinois, 3-0, in a non-conference women’s soccer match at John MacKenzie Alumni Field Thursday.

The Jacks produced the first five shots of the contest before finding the back of the net. The sixth shot of the game found its way past the Western Illinois keeper as sophomore Katelyn Beulke recorded the goal to put SDSU ahead 1-0 in the 14th minute.

South Dakota State continued to push on the attack and was awarded a penalty kick opportunity, which Maleah Evans converted. Evans’s first goal of the season came in the 31st minute and pushed the Jackrabbit advantage to 2-0.

SDSU took that lead into the halftime break. The Jackrabbits outshot the Leathernecks 14-2 over the first 45 minutes of action.

The Jacks put their final stamp on the scoreboard in the 59th minute. Another goal by Beulke pushed SDSU on top by a 3-0 score. The two-goal effort by Beulke was the first brace of her college career.

SDSU utilized 24 players over the course of the match. The Leathernecks wound up registering six shots in the second half, but the Jackrabbits withstood the attack to finish with their third shutout of the season.

The Jackrabbits improved to 3-2 this season by earning their 14th straight victory against the Leathernecks. Western Illinois fell to 0-3 overall.

Notes
South Dakota State ended the 90-minute affair by finishing ahead of Western Illinois in shots (26-8), shots on goal (15-3) and corner kicks (12-1).
Beulke’s brace is the first by a Jackrabbit this season. It’s the first two-goal game by an SDSU player since Avery Murdzek achieved the feat against St. Thomas last October.
Beulke recorded four shots on the day with all four on goal. Also recording four shots apiece were Adrianne Agbayani and Zoe Wittkop.
Stephanie Leckwold started at goalkeeper for the Jackrabbits and stopped all three shots she faced.
Taryn Hettich made her first first start of the season and played a team-high 67 minutes.
Two Jackrabbits, Solala Nasu and Selah Jackson, made their collegiate debuts in the SDSU victory.
South Dakota State improved to 18-1-1 all-time over Western Illinois. The Jacks last defeat to the Leathernecks came in 2007.

Up Next
South Dakota State closes out its stretch of five consecutive road matches on Sunday. The Jackrabbits are slated to travel to Green Bay to face the Phoenix at noon at Aldo Santaga Stadium.

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