The University of Minnesota Duluth soccer team put together a complete team performance today enroute to a 4-0 victory over University of Minnesota Crookston.
All four of today's goals were first career goals. Victoria Thorson, Mandy Conkel, Lauren Hansen, and Rachel Boelke each found the back of the net in this afternoon's game, with the final three goals coming in less than four minutes. Nora Griffin-Wiesner and Lauren Singstock each notched two assists -- both season highs. After the two assists today, Singstock leads the team in points with five.
The Bulldogs pressed Crookston from the start, putting up five shots in the first seven minutes and keeping the ball in the offensive zone for much of the game.Â
Sophomore midfielder Victoria Thorson broke the deadlock at the 42:05 mark with a long range ball that went over the head of the Golden Eagles' keeper to make it 1-0 just before the halftime whistle. Thorson has made an immediate impact with UMD, playing in all 11 games this season and starting in five, including the last five in a row. Senior captain Julia Osborne had the assist on the goal.
That goal before halftime would be crucial for the team. "It's a game we deserved to win because we were the better team and we executed well," said Head Coach Greg Cane after the victory. "It's never easy playing here, and we found a way to break them down and get a goal before halftime which was a big deal."
The UMD defense faced its biggest challenge of the afternoon after Crookston came into the second half trying to put the pressure on, but the back line held steady and the Golden Eagles would not see many more chances. Holly Kaboord nearly made it 2-0 near the 60th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar despite Erin Walpole's best attempts to knock the ball into the back of the net.
The relentless pressure on the Crookston keeper paid off as three Bulldogs scored in quick succession to end the game. After a corner kick, a pass from Nora Griffin-Wiesner to Mandy Conkel doubled the Bulldogs' lead for the senior's first career goal at 83:43 in the game. Conkel played in a season-high 53 minutes of today's game after starting in the last four.
Another impact sub in today's game was Lauren Hansen, who was subbed on at the 85:24 mark and promptly scored at 86:01. Lauren Singstock passed the ball to Nora Griffin-Wiesner on the right side of the box, who then picked up her second assist of the game as she passed the ball to Hansen, who was able to head the ball past the keeper to make it 3-0, Bulldogs.
Singstock got her second assist of the game as well, getting the ball to Rachel Boekle after a corner, who promptly put the ball past Golden Eagles keeper Abby Olsen to make it 4-0 with one minute left to play.
The Bulldogs dominated all game, putting up 45 shots to Crookston's nine and ending the game with 59% possession. Sophia Grenz got the start in net during this afternoon's game and played all 90 minutes, making four saves and picking up the shutout.Â
Today's game marked the first win for the Bulldogs this season. "The relief of getting that first win can't really be articulated well enough. The players have been struggling to get the first win; it's been an abnormally long wait for our team so you can imagine the relief, but also the emotion and sheer joy of them winning a game," said Head Coach Greg Cane. "We moved the ball well and made the other team work, and we were also good without the ball ourselves to get it back. It was a really good team effort today."
The Bulldogs will look to add a few more into the win column this coming weekend as they travel to Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State University-Mankato.Â
