FARGO, N.D. - The North Dakota State soccer team will hit the road for the final time during the regular season, as the Bison travel up I-29 on Sunday to take on in-state rival North Dakota in a pivotal Summit League matchup. The Bison will kick off against the Fighting Hawks at 1 p.m. at Bronson Field.
 
Game Coverage
Sunday's game will be televised live on Midco Sports, while also being streamed live online. The game will also have live statistics. Links for coverage will be available on GoBison.com.
 
The Series
This is the 19th meeting between North Dakota State and North Dakota, dating back to a 2-1 win for NDSU in the first-ever meeting in October of 1999 in Grand Forks. The Bison hold an 11-6-1 record all-time against the Fighting Hawks, including a 9-3-1 mark in the Summit League era after nearly a 7-year hiatus while the teams competed in different divisions of the NCAA. The Bison hold a slim 5-4-0 advantage over North Dakota in Grand Forks, with the teams splitting a weekend series in the spring of 2021 in the most recent trip. The Bison had won three straight prior to the loss.
 
Last Year
Alicia Nead gave the Bison a victory with a 90th minute winner on Homecoming and Senior Day, as NDSU defeated UND 2-1. Olivia Lovick teamed up with Nead on a 2-on-1 break and Nead chipped the keeper to score with 38 seconds left. Brookelyn Dew started off the game with a Bison goal in the second minute. In the second half, UND would strike back with an equalizer in the 76th minute, as Mara Yapello scored on a header off of a corner kick.
 
Bison Split Road Trip
NDSU picked up a vital win in Summit League play on Friday, defeating Kansas City 3-1, before falling to Oral Roberts 0-2 on Sunday to close out the road trip. Loretta Wacek gave the Bison an early lead in KC, but a 77th minute goal from the hosts tied the game. However, goals from Lavin Douglass and Paige Goaley in the final seven minutes gave NDSU an important three points. At ORU, an early penalty saw NDSU trail and unable to recover despite a goal called back for offsides and a shot that hit off the crossbar were both representative of strong chances for the Bison.
 
Goaley, Wacek Finding Scoring Boots of Late
Junior Paige Goaley and sophomore Loretta Wacek have been on scoring form in the last two weeks. Goaley has scored three goals in her last four games, taking over the lead on the team in goals this season. Wacek, who has moved into the starting lineup in the last two weeks, has made the most of her opportunity, scoring twice in her last three games.
 
Watson's Goals Leading to Wins
Olivia Watson has already doubled her goal total from her freshman season, scoring four in 2022. The sophomore's goals this year have carried more weight, with all four being the first goal of the game and three going on to serve as game winners. Watson's game winners have come against Utah Tech, Green Bay, and Western Illinois.
 
A Goaley That Scores
Paige Goaley, who missed two seasons with a leg injury, is proving to be a goal-scoring threat this year. Goaley jumped straight into the action, finding the net 37 seconds into her official return against Tarleton. She also scored in the third minute vs Chicago State. Goaley has also added three more goals in the last two weeks, scoring in the second half against St. Thomas, Western Illinois, and Kansas City. Goaley leads the Bison with five goals.
 
Constants in the Lineup
Senior Lavin Douglass and juniors Ashleigh Heely and Paige Goaley have started every game (16) for the Bison this season. Douglass and Heely have started the last 21 games overall, dating back to last season. Heely has also played every minute for NDSU in 2022, logging 1440 minutes at the center back position.
 
Douglass Strikes Another Game Winner
Senior Lavin Douglass has scored two goals this season, with both coming in the final 10 minutes and both putting the Bison in front for good to lead NDSU to victories. Douglass capped off a senior day victory over Drake earlier this season for the Bison with her first career game-winning goal in the 80th minute. The goal was the fourth of her career, and gave Douglass a goal in each of her four seasons in Fargo. Last week at Kansas City, Douglass struck her second career game-winning goal. Douglass won the ball in the midfield and made a solo run toward the box before putting the ball on her left foot and bending a shot into the top corner to give NDSU a 2-1 lead in the 84th minute.
 
Experience on Backline
The Bison have produced six cleansheets this season, with experience on the backline providing dividends in front of goal. The four main players on the backline for the Bison (McKenna Strand, Kaitlyn Hanson, Ashleigh Heely, and Jess Hanley) have combined to play in 191 games with 142 starts and 12,518 minutes. Strand leads the way with 3631 career minutes, while Heely (2991), Hanley (2965), and Hanson (2931) are all on pace to surpass 3,000 career minutes on Sunday.
 
Kallio Scores, Moves Up Active Points List
Kelsey Kallio, who had just one goal entering 2022, snapped an 18-game goal less streak earlier this season with a second half goal against Utah Tech. The junior has now found herself on the scoresheet two of the last three weeks, scoring at Omaha before heading one in against Western Illinois. The active assist leader (8) has now moved into the active goal scoring top thee with four and is second on the active point list with 16.
 
Wacek and Goaley Score, Set Up Goals Against Western Illinois
Sophomore Loretta Wacek and junior Paige Goaley each had career best games in the win over Western Illinois, as the duo each scored a goal and assisted on another for their first-ever three-point games. Wacek had one career goal and one career assist prior to Sunday's tallies. Goaley had also never contributed to multiple goals in a game prior to WIU. Wacek had a secondary assist on Kelsey Kallio's goal, while Goaley set up Wacek for the final goal of the game.
 
Scoring Four
With NDSU's 4-0 win over Western Illinois earlier this season, the Bison have hit four goals twice this season. It is the first time the Bison have hit four goals twice in a season since the 2018 season.
 
Four In a Half
NDSU's four goals in the second half against Western Illinois are the most goals in a half for the Bison since the 2016 season when they did it twice. The last time the Bison had four goals in a half against a Div. 1 opponent came against North Dakota in the first half on September 2, 2016, going on to win 4-1 in Grand Forks.
 
Cleansheets Piling Up
The Bison have already scooped up six cleansheets this season, including three in a row in mid-September. NDSU had just five cleansheets combined in the last two seasons heading into 2022. The six cleansheets match a season high for the Bison in the Mike Regan era, matching six in 2019.
 
Peak Performers of the Week
Abby Wilkinson and Ashleigh Heely have both scooped up Summit League Defensive Peak Performer honors this season. Wilkinson received the honor after a career high 10 saves at Idaho in her second-straight shutout at the time. Heely picked up the honor the week prior, after playing all 180 minutes and anchoring the back line to shutout victories against Green Bay and Drake in a pair of 1-0 games.
 
First Cleansheets
Goalkeepers Sofia Howe and Payton Mulberry each picked up their first career shutouts in 2022. Howe made two saves against Southern to record her first collegiate cleansheet. In the next game for NDSU, true freshman Payton Mulberry stopped four shots in her collegiate debut against Utah Tech, grabbing her first collegiate shutout in her first-ever start.
 
Goaley Strikes NDSU's Fastest Goal
Paige Goaley scored 37 seconds into the opener against Tarleton, the fastest goal in NDSU's program history. The goal broke the previous record of 39 seconds held by Lisa Leach, set on October 18, 1997 at Minnesota State-Mankato. The Div. 1 era record was 52 seconds into a match by Britney Monteon against Fort Wayne on October 22, 2017.
 
The Bison at Home
NDSU has a 46-26-5 record at Dacotah Field since moving from the Ellig Sports Complex at the start of the 2013 season. Heading into 2022, the Bison have had a .500 or better winning percentage at home in seven of the nine seasons.
 
NDSU Receives United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Award
The Bison earned the United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Award over the summer, being recognized for their exemplary performance in the classroom during the 2021-22 academic year. To qualify for the award, a team must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 or higher for the entire academic year. The Bison posted a 3.43 team GPA for 2021-22.
 
Picked Ninth in Summit League
North Dakota State was picked ninth in the Summit League preseason coaches' poll. The Bison received 17 points in the vote, slotting them one spot below where they finished the 2021 season. The Bison finished eighth last season after a 3-6-0 record with wins over Oral Roberts (picked 6th), St. Thomas (picked 8th) and North Dakota (picked 10th).
 
Lovick, Nead Named Summit League Players to Watch
Olivia Lovick and Alicia Nead were named Summit League Players to Watch in the league preseason release. Lovick, a forward, entered 2022 with eight career goals and three assists in two seasons. Nead, a midfielder, scored her first career goal in 2021, and also had an assist.
 
Team Captains
Senior Dani Stuber and junior Paige Goaley serve as the team captains. Stuber is in her fifth season with the Bison, while Goaley is in her fourth year. Both players are making their full returns in 2022 after missing considerable time with injuries.
 
Who's Back?
The Bison return seven starters from the 2021 squad, as well as 19 letter winners. Olivia Lovick is the top returning goal scorer, with eight career goals entering the season. Lavin Douglass and Jess Hanley also return with three goals each entering the year. Hanley, along with Kelsey Kallio, are the top returning assists leaders with six each heading into 2022. NDSU also returns two goalkeepers with considerable experience in Abby Wilkinson and Sofia Howe.
 
Head Coach Mike Regan
Mike Regan is in his fifth season as the helm of the Bison. Under Regan, NDSU has five All-Summit League selections, including four first team, as well as four Freshman Team/All-Newcomer Team selections and two All-Tournament picks.
 
Regan came to NDSU after two years as an assistant at Indiana. Prior to IU, he was an assistant at Drake for four seasons, where he was part of the 2015 Missouri Valley Conference championship team and MVC Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
Before Drake, Regan was the head coach for the North Iowa Area Community College men's team for five seasons, posting a record of 74-17-6 and being named the NJCAA/ICCAC Men's Soccer Coach of the Year three times.
 
Up Next
North Dakota State will close out the home schedule and the regular season next week by welcoming in South Dakota and South Dakota State on Friday and Sunday. The Bison will take on South Dakota in another key Summit League matchup on Thursday, October 21, with kickoff slated for 6 p.m. Sunday's regular season finale against South Dakota State will take place at 1 p.m. and will be televised live on WDAY Xtra.