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Last week the Marauders wrapped up the regular season with a pair of wins. In their last home game of the season U-Mary took on Northern State. Up 2-1 off of goals from
Andrea Muller and
Emily Christensen, the Marauders allowed a goal with just 19 seconds remaining that sent the game to overtime. Less than four minutes into the extra session,
Alex Bachman-Williams took advantage of a defensive miscue to give the Marauders a 3-2 win. Next up for U-Mary was MSU-Moorhead. The Marauders did not allow the cold temperatures to slow them down as they cruised to a 3-0 win. Muller,
Michelle Jones and Bachman-Williams scored the goals for U-Mary.
Ashley Akers recorded her third shutout in NSIC play.
STREAKING: After losing to Saint Cloud State to complete an 0-2 weekend, U-Mary was sitting in eight place. With the top eight teams making the postseason, the Marauders were in danger of not making the playoffs. Three weeks and six consecutive wins later and the Marauders are entering the playoffs as the fifth seed. During the winning streak U-Mary is outscoring opponents by an impressive 18-5 margin. Alex Bachman-Williams and
Michelle Jones have played a big role in turning the Marauders' season around as each has 13 points over the six game stretch. Bachman-Williams has scored six goals to go with one assist. Jones has four goals to go with five assists.
Ashley Akers has posted two shutouts and has an .838 save percentage during the span.
This week the Marauders will be traveling to fourth seeded Minot State for the opening round of the NSIC tournament. If U-Mary advances, they will take on the winner of first seeded Minnesota State and eight seeded Minnesota Duluth on Friday. Should the Marauders advance, he Northern Sun Championship will be played on Sunday.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The Marauders have one of the best marks in the history of the Northern Sun women's soccer conference tournament. U-Mary is 7-3-1 overall and its .629 winning percentage is fourth. The Marauders are tied for third in tournament championships with two (2006, 2007), trailing just Winona State University (six) and the University of Minnesota Duluth (5).
LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN: This is U-Mary's seventh straight season qualifying for the Northern Sun conference tournament. The Marauders have made the tournament every year since joining the NSIC in 2006.
REBOUND: After winning their first seven NSIC tournament games, the Marauders have gone 0-3-1. After losing in the semifinals in 2008, U-Mary tied Minnesota State University 0-0 in 2009 but did not advance after losing a shootout. The Marauders lost 1-0 at the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2010. Most recently U-Mary fell to 2-1 at St. Cloud State University in 2011.
ON THE LINE: The NSIC / US Bank Women's Soccer Tournament champion gains an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.
MARAUDERS VS BEAVERS: Since Minot State University began its program in 2010, U-Mary is 2-0-1 against the Beavers. The two teams played to a 1-1 draw in their first meeting in 2010 in Bismarck. The Marauders then captured the next two matches, 2-0 in 2011 in Minot and 1-0 this season at home.
Andrea Muller scored late in the first overtime to give U-Mary the win in the season opener. It was the Beavers first NSIC contest.
SCOUTING REPORT: Minot State has outscored opponents 31-10 on the season. This past weekend Minot tied MSU-Moorhead 0-0 and defeated Northern State 3-1. The Beavers are currently riding an 8-game unbeaten streak. The last time Minot State lost was Sept. 30 against Minnesota State. Midfielder Zoe Fisher has been a spark plug for the Beavers offense leading the team in both goals (9) and assists (7). Minot's stingy defense has been keyed all year by goalkeeper Marie Torres. Torres is stopping 90 percent of the shots she has faced and has seven shutouts on the year.
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