Madison Montgomery
Maria Saldivar
1
Idaho State ISU (0-4)
2
Winner Northern Arizona NAU (5-1)
Idaho State ISU
(0-4)
1
Final
2
Northern Arizona NAU
(5-1)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Idaho State ISU 1 0 1
Northern Arizona NAU 2 0 2

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | Katie Rapp, NAU Athletic Communications

Soccer’s Madison Montgomery Earns Second Career Brace in 2-1 Win over Idaho State

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (March 26, 2021) – Northern Arizona women's soccer secured its fourth straight Big Sky Conference win today over the Idaho State Bengals, 2-1. The Lumberjacks advance to 5-1 on the season, holding a perfect 4-0 league record. ISU drops to 0-4 (0-3 Big Sky) in the spring.

"For us, we wanted to dictate the game, and I think we started off that way," head coach Kylie Louw said. "Credit to Idaho State who made some adjustments and took away our momentum at some of the times. They pulled back one great goal right before the half – but at the end of the day – we did enough to win the game and I thought we did really well."

NAU bested the Bengals on a cold, windy and snowy day. With weather fluctuating throughout the two hour match, the 'Jacks held onto their 2-1 tally throughout the full time. 

"We want to become a team that is not going to let anything take away from our plan, our execution, our energy, or our effort," Louw said. "Our team has really adapted to overcoming anything. It could be to overcome formations that we play or overcome adapting things during the game. Nothing is going to really surprise this team anymore."

Leading the Lumberjacks in scoring, Madison Montgomery earned her second career brace during today's match over ISU. 

Montgomery found the back of the net in the 12th minute of the match after breaking away from the Begal defense. Hitting the top bar and bouncing in, Montgomery earned her fourth goal of the spring and the first of this match.

The second goal for the Lumberjacks would stem from a free kick in the 29th minute. Almost placed at the halfway line, Montgomery took the shot and scored once again for Northern Arizona, going over the head of Idaho State's freshman goalkeeper, McKayla Wetsel. 

"Two great goals by Madison Montgomery," Louw said. "I think she has the talent and she has the ability and she's believing in herself. She really does her job for the team."

Idaho State responded with its first goal of the season exactly one minute after the junior's second career brace. Michaela Didericksen on a pass from Kayla Buchanan would send the ball past NAU's keeper, Taryn Benham.

With the single goal from Idaho State, Benham will look for making her 22nd career shutout on Sunday. The senior is tied for first for NAU's individual shutout record with alumni Tori Rocke, both posting a clean sheet tally of 21. 

Even with the goal from the Bengals, the Lumberjacks never let up on their offensive pressure. Kylie Kapustka had several opportunities in scoring for Northern Arizona, recording four shots and forcing one save from the opposing keeper. 

"I think Kylie is really determined," Louw said. "She's been trying to execute the stuff we've been doing during training and it worked out for her. She had two great opportunities and I wish one of them went into the back of the net, but her time will come if she continues doing what she's doing."

Montgomery would lead with four shots on goal, recording a perfect percentage in scoring attempts. Maddie Shafer would also leave the pitch with a flawless shot on goal percentage, recording two scoring efforts on ISU. 

In an effort to try a different offensive strategy as the match closed in, Grace Quinn made her first debut on Flagstaff High Schools turf. Playing for 10 minutes, the freshman attempted to set up plays for the Lumberjacks to score, including one opportunity for Shafer.

"I put [Grace] in a tough spot, I asked her to do some very specific things and she went on and did that," Louw said. "That's what this team is about. They take instruction very well and they go on and do their job for their team and that's the most impressive thing."

In total, the 'Jacks would finish the afternoon with 13 shots compared to ISU's five, with a majority being taken in the first half. With four shots and two on goal during the initial 45 minutes, Benham only needed to make one save during the entire match. 

As Northern Arizona begins its weekend series against Big Sky foe Idaho State with a 2-1 win, the Lumberjacks will look forward to playing the Bengals again this upcoming Sunday, March 28 at 12 p.m. MST at Flagstaff High.
 
Gallery: (3-26-2021) NAU vs. Idaho State, 3/26/21
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