Story by Alex Agueros, for The Muleskinner—
The Jennies (16-2-4) will travel to Allendale, Mich. on Friday to take on Minnesota State University (17-1-3). This Sweet Sixteen appearance is a rematch of the Jens’ second game of the year, which they won 2-1.
Advancing to the Central Region championship game comes after defeating Southwestern Oklahoma State (20-1-1) on Sunday in a cold, rainy, 3-0 shutout. Junior midfielder Carly Stanley was involved with all three goals, scoring one and assisting on two.
“It was a good team win,” Stanley said. “It was freezing and raining and wet, but we didn’t let that bother us. We stayed focused.”
The team’s dominant midfield play and tough defense through the nasty weather led the team to its 11th shutout win of the season.
“Our defensive back line did not make any mistakes, and gave us a chance to win,” head coach Lewis Theobald said. “After the first and second goal I thought we had all the momentum. I was really impressed. I thought we were tough.”
Looking ahead, the Jens hope to continue their run in the tournament against Minnesota State, a team they beat in September.
“We scored late to win last time,” Stanley said. “It’s going to be a challenge.”
Minnesota State has a senior-heavy roster and an aggressive offense, and claimed the top-rank in the Central Region for a stretch of three weeks this season. Their only loss this season came against the Jens.
“We know going in they would be a tough team,” Theobald said. “It will come down to who can execute better. It comes down to who’s going to make a play. It’s going to be an exciting game.”
The Jens are confident in the approach that carried them this far into the tournament.
“We’re not really changing much now,” Stanley said. “We’re going to keep doing what we normally do and trust it works.”
The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. Right after that, the Midwest Region championship game of Grand Valley State (19-1-2) and Wisconsin-Parkside (14-4-1) will begin.
The winner of those two games will play at noon on Sunday in Allendale, Mich.