Women's Soccer | 10/27/2017 9:57:00 AM

Quick Notes:

• The North Dakota State women's soccer team closes out the regular season with a match at South Dakota State Sunday, Oct. 29, at 1 p.m. at Fishback Soccer Park in Brookings, S.D. If the Bison win the match, they will clinch a share of their third straight Summit League regular season title.
• NDSU has already secured a spot in The Summit League Women's Soccer Championship, which will occur Nov. 2 and 4 in Fargo at Dacotah Field.
• The Bison enter the weekend with an overall record of 7-9-0 and are in second-place in The Summit League with a 5-1-0 league record and 15 points.

 The Series Against South Dakota State
        Sunday's regular season finale in Brookings will mark the 23rd meeting in the all-time series that dates back to 2000. SDSU leads the series, 10-9-3 and has won the last two meetings against the Bison. Last season, the Jackrabbits claimed a 1-0 victory over North Dakota State in Fargo. The last time NDSU and SDSU met in Brookings was during The Summit League tournament championship match in 2015 with the Jackrabbits claiming a 3-0 win. North Dakota State has not won at South Dakota State since 2006.
 
North Dakota State Notes

• The Bison enter Sunday with an overall record of 7-9-0 and a Summit League record of 5-1-0 after rolling to a 4-0 win over Fort Wayne Oct. 22. NDSU has won seven of its last eight matches, with its lone loss occurring at Summit League preseason favorite Denver Oct. 1.
• In the Bison's triumph over Fort Wayne, juniors Britney Monteon and Malley O'Brien netted one goal each, while sophomore Mariah Haberle recorded her second brace of the season with two goals. Monteon and redshirt freshman Julia Densmore each recorded an assist in the match.
• Through 16 matches, O'Brien leads the Bison and is third for third in The Summit League with six goals, while Haberle has four goals, and junior Hanna Norman has three goals.
• Freshman Danielle Algera paces NDSU and is tied for third in the league with four assists, while juniors Holly Enderle and Britney Monteon, and freshman Malana Vachon each have two assists.
• Sophomore goalkeeper Monica Polgar is 7-4-0 with four shutouts and one shared shutout in 903 minutes between the posts. She has allowed 14 goals while making a team-best 68 saves for a 1.39 goals-against average (GAA). Polgar ranks second in the league in saves and save percentage (.829), and is tied for second in shutouts and goals allowed.
• As a team, NDSU is averaging 1.12 goals per game while allowing 1.88 goals per game. The Bison are being outshot by opponents, 17.9 to 10.4.
• North Dakota State was picked to finish tied for second in The Summit League preseason poll.
• NDSU welcomes nine newcomers this season in freshmen Marian Taiwo (F), Danielle Algera (MF), Daniella Jasper (F/MF), Malana Vachon (MF), Brookelyn Dew (F/MF), Grace Sundberg (D), Ellen Schneider (D/MF) and Maddie Burnstein (D), and transfer Nicola De Pape (D).

 Scouting South Dakota State

• South Dakota State enters Sunday with an overall record of 10-4-3 and a sit atop The Summit League standings at 6-0-0 after defeating South Dakota Thursday, 2-0.
• Through 17 matches, SDSU is led by senior forward Nicole Hatcher with six goals, six assists and 18 points. Sophomore forward Leah Manuleleua is second on the team in total points with six goals, three assists and 15 points. Hatcher is tied for The Summit League lead in assists, and ranks third in points and tied for third in goals.
• Sophomore goalkeeper Maggie Smither is 10-4-3 with a league-best six shutouts between the posts. She leads the league in saves (82), save percentage (.854) and GAA (0.84).
• As a team the Jackrabbits are averaging 1.47 goals per game while holding opponents to just 0.88 goals per game. SDSU is outshooting its adversaries, 15.5 to 10.2.
• South Dakota State was picked to finish tied for second in The Summit League preseason poll.
• SDSU is under the leadership of first season head coach Brock Thompson.

 Summit League Player of the Week Honors

• Malley O'Brien, Offensive Player of the Week, Oct. 9
• Monica Polgar, Defensive Player of the Week, Sept. 18

 Border States Electric Student-Athlete of the Week Honors

• Malley O'Brien, Oct. 10
• Monica Polgar, Sept. 26
• Hanna Norman, Sept. 19

 Forty-Three Consecutive Starts and Counting
        Junior Hanna Norman has started in 43 consecutive matches dating back to her freshman season. She has started all 16 matches this season, while starting all 18 matches in 2016, and nine straight matches in 2015. Entering Friday, Norman has played in 53 career matches, including 50 starts.  
 
New Playing Surface at Dacotah Field
        North Dakota State will be playing on a brand new FieldTurf artificial turf surface at Dacotah Field beginning this season. The turf was installed in the summer of 2017.
 
Looking Back at 2016

• The Bison compiled a 10-8-1 overall record and won their second straight Summit League regular season title with a 5-2-1 league mark.
• Seven Bison were named All-Summit League. Sophomore Holly Enderle and senior Amy Yang were selected first team all-league, while seniors Natalie Fenske, Genna Joyce and Lizzie Lukas, and freshman Monica Polgar garnered second team all-league honors. Freshman Mariah Haberle was named to the all-freshmen team.
• Holly Enderle, Natalie Fenske and Amy Yang were voted to The Summit League Academic All-League Team.
• Natalie Fenske was voted to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 6 First Team for her performance in the classroom and on the pitch. Fenske was also named a Senior CLASS Award candidate.
• Holly Enderle led the Bison and ranked second in The Summit League with 10 goals and 22 points.
• Amy Yang and Mariah Haberle each dished out a team-best six assists.
• Monica Polgar led the league with six shutouts in goal and tallied a 9-8-0 record with a 1.27 goals-against average (GAA) and 57 saves.

 Head Coach Mark Cook
        Mark Cook is in his sixth season at the helm of the North Dakota State soccer program after being named head coach in 2012.  He is the fourth head coach in the 20-year history of the program.
        Cook helped the Bison claim their second straight Summit League regular season championship in 2016, as North Dakota State compiled an overall record of 10-8-1 and a league mark of 5-2-1. NDSU qualified for its eighth consecutive Summit League tournament and hosted the league tournament at Dacotah Field for the first time in program history. Seven student-athletes received All-Summit League honors. Holly Enderle and Amy Yang earned first team all-league accolades, while Natalie Fenske, Genna Joyce, Lizzie Lukas and Monica Polgar were named second team all-league. Mariah Haberle rounded out the Bison honorees and was named to the all-freshmen team, respectively.
        Cook came to NDSU after serving as the Director of Coaching at the Minnesota Thunder Academy for 11 years, where he grew a four-team program into one of the premier club programs in the Twin Cities with 65 teams in 2012.
        Cook holds the United States Soccer Federation 'A' coaching license, the highest certification available in the U.S.  He also has the NSCAA Premier License and Director of Coaching Diploma.
        He graduated from Alfred (N.Y.) University in 1993 with a bachelor's degree in communications. He was the starting goalkeeper at Alfred for two years.
 
On the Horizon
        North Dakota State will take on a to be determined opponent at a to be announced time in the opening round of The Summit League Women's Soccer Championship Thursday, Nov. 2, at Dacotah Field in Fargo.