Soccer | 10.16.18

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, the Concordia-St. Paul soccer team (8-3-3, 5-3-3 NSIC) will take on MSU Moorhead and Northern State at home this upcoming weekend. Friday's contest with the Dragons is set for 7 p.m. and Sunday's game against the Wolves kicks off at 1 p.m.
 
The Golden Bears remain tied for fifth with St. Cloud State with a total of 18 conference points. Both teams are within striking distance of fourth place Winona State (19 points), and Minot State is right below the Bears in seventh (17 points). The top eight teams in the NSIC make the playoffs, with the top four teams hosting a first round game.
 
PINK DAY
The Friday, October 19^th game against MSU Moorhead will be a Pink Game put on by Concordia University Athletics. The first 50 student fans (with CSP ID) will get a free piece of Green Mill Pizza. The team will be collecting donations for Hope Lodge – Minneapolis, which provides free housing for cancer patients and their families while undergoing treatment. The CSP Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) will be using the donations to purchase much needed supplies for the lodge.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Bears went 1-2 last week, facing a pair of nationally ranked opponents before finishing the week taking on Minnesota Crookston. The team first took on #22 Minnesota State in their only weekday contest of the season. Senior Jordan Rowan-Stafford gave CSP an early 1-0 lead, scoring within the first seven minutes. The Mavericks rallied, though, scoring two first half goals and then another goal in the second half to put the game out of reach.
 
Over the weekend, Concordia headed north to take on both #5 Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. BSU proved to be a tough opponent, as they held a 12-4 advantage in shots throughout the game, scoring once in the first half and twice in the second to come away with a 3-0 win. The Golden Bears bounced back against Minnesota Crookston, though, as Rowan-Stafford scored twice to help CSP to their eighth win of the year.
 
The shutout win over the Golden Eagles gave Concordia its eighth shutout of the season, which is a new CSP school record for most shutouts in a season.
 
MSU MOORHEAD SERIES HISTORY
When playing the Dragons, CSP holds a solid 15-5-2 record, and has won the last nine matchups in a row. The Bears are 8-2 when facing MSUM at home and have not lost to the Dragons at home since October of 2001. Thirteen of the 22 games between these two teams have been decided by more than one goal, including two of their last three contests.
 
LAST MEETING VS MSUM
In last year's game, it took the majority of two overtimes to decide a winner. The Golden Bears held a dominant 27-7 advantage in shots, holding the Dragons to only two shots throughout the entirety of regulation. CSP also took eight corner kicks during the match, giving themselves even more opportunities. The shots were a little more balanced during the overtime frames, with CSP still holding an edge at 8-5.
 
With 47 seconds left in the second overtime it was Cayla Renwick who scored to give Concordia the victory, sliding the ball past the goalie from inside the box. This was the second overtime win in a row for the Golden Bears, who had defeated Wayne State 2-1 in the first minute of overtime during the previous weekend.   
 
ABOUT THE DRAGONS
MSU Moorhead is 3-10 on the year and 3-8 in conference play so far this season. Their conference wins include wins over Minot State, Southwest Minnesota State, and Wayne State. Most recently, the team defeated Wayne State 1-0 at home, before falling 2-0 against Augustana.
 
The team has scored seven goals this season, while allowing an average of 1.85 goals per game, 27 total. Sophomore Carly Jo Gamrath and senior Tomoni Nishihara have been their most prolific offensive players, each scoring two goals. Gamrath also has two assists on the year.
 
Freshman Kayleigh Sedlacek has gotten the majority of starts in net for the Dragons, recording 112 saves and a .862 save percentage on the year, which ranks fourth of any goalie in the NSIC. She has allowed 18 goals, an average of 1.46 goals per game, and has posted two shutouts this season. 
 
NORTHERN STATE SERIES HISTORY
In their all-time series with the Wolves, the Bears hold a 5-15-1 record, but have won two of the last three matchups. When the series started in 1999, Northern State won 12 of the first 14 games. The series has been a little more even since 2011, with CSP holding a slight 4-3 edge in wins. Concordia has a 3-6-1 record when playing the Wolves in St. Paul, with all three of those wins occurring within the last seven years.
 
LAST MEETING VS NSU
The Bears came away with a 1-0 win over the Wolves in their last meeting against Northern State. Concordia's defense was solid throughout, allowing no shots on goal and only two total shots for NSU. The offense also did its part, taking 17 shots, 12 of which were on goal.
 
Jade Weller was the one who broke the tie for the Golden Bears, heading in a Madyson St. Germain corner kick in the 35^th minute of play. The defense took care of the rest, posting their sixth shutout of the season.
 
ABOUT THE WOLVES
Northern State holds a 7-6-1 record, with a 5-5-1 record in the NSIC. They currently hold the eighth spot in conference standings, which is the final playoff spot. With 16 points, which is two behind the Golden Bears, there is room for them to move up or down within the last two weekends of regular season play. The Wolves are most recently coming off a 1-1 weekend, losing 1-0 against Augustana, but then rallying to defeat Wayne State 4-3.
 
The Wolves have scored 20 goals this season, which is the same as their opponents. Senior Darian Leschewski leads the team in goals and points, scoring five goals so far and adding an assist. Teammate Shianne Rosselli is right behind her, though, with four goals of her own. Sophomore Emily Reiten and junior Stephany Estrada are also offensive threats, as they each have three goals on the year.
 
Redshirt freshman Jessica Otto has made ten starts for Northern State in net, recording the fifth best save percentage in the conference at .859. Otto allows an average of 1.23 goals per game and has made a total of 73 saves this season.
 
KEY STATS
-Jordan Rowan-Stafford scored three times last week and now leads the team in goals (5) and points (11).
-Rowan-Stafford continues to climb the CSP record book, as she is now tied for fifth in career goals (16) and is sixth in career points (45).
-Concordia recorded its eighth shutout of the season against Minnesota Crookston this past weekend, which set a new school record for most shutouts in a single season.
-Junior Emily Nelson recorded her fourth full shutout of the season against UMC and holds the lowest goals allowed average in the NSIC at 0.30 and second highest save percentage at .900.
-The team's eight shutouts is tied for the most of any team in the conference, and CSP has the third lowest goals against average (0.68).