ST. PAUL, Minn. - CSP soccer (6-3-3, 4-3-1 NSIC) is set to host the Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State (1-9-1, 1-5-1 NSIC) for a Friday night conference match-up.
Action will take place on Friday at Sea Foam Stadium with a 7 p.m. kick-off and will mark the Golden Bears Mental Health Awareness Game.
RECAP OF THE WEEK
The Golden Bears finish the week 1-1 after dropping their Friday contest to Augustana in Sioux Falls 2-1 and then battling back with a dominant second half against Wayne State on Sunday afternoon to get the 3-1 win.
CSP soccer is currently ranked ninth in the United Soccer Coaches Central Region Poll after the past week of play.
Game One: Augie 2, CSP 1
The Augies got on the board first at the 23rd minute off a header from a left-footed pass by Connor Rylance
CSP's goal came in the 82nd minute after a corner kick by Clare Snapko landed right in front of the goal. Brittany Bordson deflected the ball off her body towards Amaya O'Hearn on the left side of the net who kicked it in for the goal.
With just 10 seconds left, Augustana's Madelyn White drove the ball up the right side of the field and took a shot at the net, which hit the top post. Audrey Parnell was able to get the rebound off the post and knocked the ball into the net for the game winner.
Parnell's two goals were her first of the season.
Sydney Potter started her sixth game in the net this season for Concordia. The sophomore goalkeeper totaled three saves on the day.
Bordson and Sophia Haase led the Golden Bears in shots with two each. They both also had a shot on goal along with Sydney Manthana who had one as well.
Augustana outshot Concordia-St. Paul 13-8 in the match, with the Vikings outshooting CSP 6-3 in the first half and 7-5 in the second half. CSP had one more save than Augie at 3-2 and Augie led in corner kicks 6-3.
Game Two: CSP 3, WSC 1
In the first half, the Wildcats took control of their offensive chances and scored the first goal of the game at the 30th minute mark. CSP was unable to respond with scoring of their own, but owned the shot advantage 6-3 going into the half while having five corner kicks.
Sophomore Sophia Haase's two goal performance highlighted the game for the Golden Bears along with a team high five shots.
Haase scored her first and the team's first goal of the game at the 54th minute to even the score. She was assisted on the goal by McKayla Stockness, marking her first career assist.
From here on out the game was all CSP, holding a 14-6 shot advantage and having 10 corner kicks to the Wildcats two.
Haase scored her second goal of the game at the 61st minute off a pass from Amaya O'Hearn marking the eventual game-winner.
Senior Brittany Bordson scored her first goal of the season at the 77th minute to tally one more goal for the Navy and Gold. She was assisted on the goal by Ashley Bennett and O'Hearn.
The Wildcats had no answers for the powerful CSP offense and were unable to score in the second half.
Neely Kunz, Belle Abruzzo and Clare Snapko all held down the defensive side of the pitch plating a full 90-minute game.
Sydney Potter got her seventh start of the season in the net recording four saves.
SEASON LEADERS
Amaya O'Hearn leads the team and NSIC in assists with eight. After this week of play she added two assists making her the NCAA DII leader. Her 0.67 assist per game average leads the NSIC and is good for eighth in NCAA DII.
O'Hearn also leads the team in points with 14 which ranks her third in the NSIC.
Sammy Ponsonby leads the team in goals with four ranking her sixth in the NSIC. She leads the NSIC in game-winning goals with three which is good for 13th in NCAA DII.
Clare Snapko leads the team in minutes played with 1,027 leading the Golden Bear defensive side of the pitch. She has tallied two goals and two assists on the season.
Goalkeeper Sydney Potter leads the team with five shoutouts recording a career-high 20 saves.
HISTORY BETWEEN CSP AND SMSU
The two programs have met a total of 26 times with the Golden Bears holding a 14-11-1 all-time advantage. CSP got their first win over the Mustangs on September 15, 2007 with a 2-0 shutout.
The Navy and Gold currently hold a seven game-winning streak dating back to September 23, 2016. Last season, the Golden Bears won 2-0 in a regular season contest led by Katie Anderson tying the program record with her 29th career goal.
ABOUT THE MUSTANGS
Southwest Minnesota State posted a 6-10-1 (6-7-1 NSIC) record in the 2023 season and were picked to finish 10th in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll with 76 points.
The Mustangs currently sit at 1-9-1 (1-5-1 NSIC) after going 0-2 last week, falling at home to both Minnesota State and Sioux Falls by a combined score of 8-2.
The player to watch for SMSU is forward Haley Mason who is the team's lead scorer with three goals. She scored her third goal this past weekend against Minnesota State. Mason has a team-high 20 shots with 12 coming on goal.
