Chalk up another win

Sunday, September 12

Lawrence, KS

11:00 AM

Washington State University

4-1-1, 0-0-0

Kansas

4-3-1, 0-0-0

Washington St.

Kansas

Photo by: Kansas Athletics

September 12, 2021 | Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Coach Shulenberger Postgame Highlights

By: Athletic Communications

In Case You Missed It
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Wasting no time getting back to its winning ways Washington State (4-1-1) went to Kansas (4-3-1) and sounding defeated the Jayhawks, 3-0, Sunday afternoon at Rock Chalk Park. As they have done for much of the season the Cougars suffocated their opponents with a relentless attack, dominating at all three levels en route to their fourth cleansheet of the year. From the outset it was all Cougs in Kansas as WSU made good on its first offensive push of the day and never looked back. Continuing her evolution into one of the Cougs' most dangerous weapons on set pieces, junior Bridget Rieken put herself into the mix, outleaping the competition for an in-swinging corner from super-senior Sydney Pulver to net what would be the game-winner in the 5'. The well-placed header was Rieken's third goal off of Cougar corners in as many games after scoring a brace a week prior at home against Hawai'i. Continuing the pressure the Cougs would double their lead in the 25' converting a turnover in the midfield into the second goal of the match. This time it was the sophomores who got the job done as Margie Detrizio fought off a pair of Jayhawk defenders to find Alyssa Gray unmarked on the leftside for an easy finish into the back of the net. The score was the second time the duo had connected for a goal after hooking up for the game-winner against Eastern Washington earlier on the year.
After taking their two-goal advantage into the break the Cougs would tack on one more insurance goal early in the second half when super-senior Elyse Bennett timed a run perfectly behind the Jayhawks' defense for a chance to go one-on-one with Kansas 'keeper, Melania Pasar. With Pasar closing, Bennett would take an extra touch to beat Passar before slotting home her team-leading fourth goal into the far-side of the net. The entire sequence was setup by super-senior Brianna Alger who stole a clearance at midfield before sending a ball over the top to the streaking Bennett for her first assist of the season since returning from injury.
On top of the Cougars' offense dominating once again the WSU defense was up to the task, shutting down a Jayhawk attack that had scored four times the game prior against Cincinnati. In all, WSU allowed just six total shots with only two attempts at goal that never truly tested the freshman Nadia Cooper in her first start between the posts for the Cougs.

Stat of the Match
The Cougs recorded their third goal inside the first 10 minutes of a match with the 5' goal from Bridget Rieken.

The Moments That Made The Match

The corner pays off as Rieken uses her size to net her 3rd goal of the season#GoCougs pic.twitter.com/HF68F9yc23
— Washington State Soccer (@WSUCougarSoccer) September 12, 2021

The Cougs sophomores take advantage of a give away in the offensive third as Gray nabs her 3rd goal of the year#GoCougs pic.twitter.com/KnhxfZcFhl
— Washington State Soccer (@WSUCougarSoccer) September 12, 2021

.@bri_alger with her first assist of the season finding @elyse_bennett99 with a perfect ball over the top#GoCougs pic.twitter.com/v5sYNVQZDG
— Washington State Soccer (@WSUCougarSoccer) September 12, 2021

Things You Need To Know

The game marked the first game all-time against Kansas. WSU improved to 7-4-2 all-time against Big12 opponents.
Washington State improved to 2-0-0 on the road in 2021.
The Cougs scored multiple goals for the fourth time in six contests.
Freshman Nadia Cooper earned her first career solo cleansheet in her first career start. It was her first career win.
- Cooper became the first true freshman to win her first career start since Lindsey Jorgensen defeated Portland State, 9-0, Sept. 24, 2000. It was also the last time a true freshman recorded a shutout in her first career start as a Coug.
Junior Bridget Rieken scored her third goal in as many games while tallying her first career game-winner.
- Rieken has recorded a point in three-straight games.
Sophomore Alyssa Gray netted her third goal of the season and fourth of her career.
5th year Elyse Bennett netted her team best fourth goal of the season. It was her 20th career strike (tied for 9th all-time) becoming the 10th Cougar all-time to score 20+ career goals.
- Bennett recorded her 50th career point tying for 10th all-time in program history with Carly Dobratz.
5th year Brianna Alger, a 2019 all-region honoree, recorded her first assist of the season and 13th of her career. The super senior picked up her first start of the season after returning two weeks prior from an ACL injury.
5th year Sydney Pulver played her 83rd career game, 3rd all-time in games played.