FARGO, N.D. – Junior midfielder
Kaitlyn Glover netted Denver's first hat trick since Nicholette DiGiacomo in the 2012 NCAA Tournament to lead the Pioneers to a 4-0 win at North Dakota State on Sunday afternoon at Dacotah Field. With the victory and the result of the South Dakota and South Dakota State game in Vermillion (2-1 USD), Denver is now five points clear at the top of the Summit League table with the two South Dakota schools left to play next weekend at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium.
Scoring Summary:
DEN (12-5-0, 7-0-0): Glover 14', Sharp 15' Glover 20', Glover 89'
UND (2-11-4, 2-5-0):
Quotable – Head Coach Jeff Hooker:
"The speed with which we played and our ability to move the ball around the field was absolutely outstanding in the first half. In the second half, we played like we had the lead, which was okay, but I thought the first 45 minutes we kept our foot on the gas and were brilliant. Our passing and our runs were very well synchronized, and I'm really proud of the result. Congrats to Kaitlyn on the hat trick, we haven't seen one of those in a while, and now we return home for a couple of weekends to end the regular season and host the conference tournament.
Inside the Box Score:
Denver outshot North Dakota State 19-5, including 10-2 on goal. The Pioneers took eight of the nine corners.
First Half:
The Pioneers thoroughly controlled the opening 45 minutes, outshooting North Dakota State 15-1, including 7-0 on target and taking a 3-0 lead into the intermission.
Denver scored its three goals in a span of 6:19.
Brittney Lewis found
Natalie Beckman down the Denver left to start the opener. Beckman played a cross into the edge of the six-yard box, and
Kaitlyn Glover redirected it into the back of the net on the volley to put the Pioneers ahead.
Sydney Sharp found the back of the net to start the second half from just inside the top of the 18 yard box. Glover went to ground to win the ball and got it to Sharp, who fired home her 13
th goal of the season and stretched her streak to eight-consecutive matches with a goal.
Glover's second made it 3-0 in the 20
th minute. At the top of the box, Sharp slipped Glover in behind the North Dakota State backline. Glover finished across the face of goal to continue to extend the Pioneers lead.
After her first-half brace, Glover pushed her season goal total to nine and her career total to 15.
Second Half:
The start to the second half was quiet compared to the fireworks of the opening 45 minutes, and the next goal didn't come until Glover completed her hat trick in the 89
th.
McKenna Dannenhauer played a sideways pass to
Taylor Wells, who slipped in Glover in the middle of the area. Glover took a couple of touches before capping the hatty with her 10
th goal of the season.
Notes:
- Sharp has scored in 17 of her last 24 appearances, including in 13 of 17 this season and in each of her last eight.
- Beckman now has 15 assists this season and 44 in her career.
- 15 assists in a season is tied with Nicholette DiGiacomo's 2010 season, tying the single-season record.
- Glover's hat trick was the 15th in Denver's Division I history
Up Next:
Denver returns home next Friday to start its final home weekend of the regular season when the Pioneers welcome South Dakota to the University of Denver Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. MT.
Tickets:
Denver men's and women's soccer single game tickets for the 2021 campaign are on sale now, and can be purchased
here.
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