BEMIDJI 鈥� Katrina Barthelt was getting tired of an offensively mundane first half between the Bemidji State women鈥檚 soccer team and Winona State.
Just 27 seconds into the second half, Barthelt delivered a boot from about 25 yards out to give the Beavers a 1-0 lead. Her strike was the difference in BSU鈥檚 3-0 win.
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鈥淏efore the coaches got to the locker room, we talked about energy,鈥� redshirt junior Emma Huelsnitz said of the halftime adjustments. 鈥淲e talked about how we鈥檙e more of a second-half team. We changed a few things, and I just thought everyone had a lot more urgency and we did a lot more pressing.鈥�
Barthelt鈥檚 goal followed an extended feeling-out process in the opening 45 minutes. The Beavers and the Warriors combined for just five shots on target, with none of them overly threatening to crack the scoreless tie.
Four minutes after Barthelt broke the ice, Lauren Hoody doubled Bemidji State鈥檚 lead on a low-left shot from just outside the 18-yard box. Both Barthelt and Hodny鈥檚 goals were unassisted.
鈥淭hey kind of dug a little deeper,鈥� head coach Jim Stone said. 鈥淎t moments this season, they鈥檝e shown different gears. For whatever reason, we鈥檙e playing in second or third gear when we should be playing in fifth. It鈥檚 a maturation process. As we progress, they need to figure that out, because you don鈥檛 always get to halftime (scoresless). You could be down 2-0, but we were fortunate to be (tied) and get to the game we wanted.鈥�
Barthelt wasn鈥檛 the only one who was tired of not scoring on Friday night.
Huelsnitz made it 3-0 on a corner kick in the 72nd minute. Ella Wade crossed the ball into the center of the box right to Huelsnitz鈥檚 forehead.
Not only was hit her first goal, it was just Huelsnitz鈥檚 second shot on target this season. It snapped a streak of 1,099 days between goals, dating back to her true freshman season on Nov. 5, 2021.
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鈥淭he credit goes to Ella Wade,鈥� Huelsnitz said. 鈥淚 mean, that was a dime right to my head. All the glory goes to her.鈥�
Not only did the Beavers break out for three goals in the second half, they did it while allowing just one shot on target. Keeper Sonia Alfieri was relatively untested, making just three saves in the shutout victory.
BSU鈥檚 stout defensive play was powered by its dominating presence in the midfield in the second half. It also powered Bemidji State offensively.
鈥淚f you look at our first goal, I think it came from us pressing them,鈥� Stone said. 鈥淲hat happened was we started to make them uncomfortable on the ball. The flip side of that is we end up with more time on the ball ourselves. That allows us to calm down a bit and move the ball. There was better possession in the second half. We rotated the ball from right to left and left to right better.鈥�
Since starting 0-2-0, Bemidji State has improved to 5-3-0, winning five of its last six games and improving to 3-1-0 in NSIC play.
鈥淲e鈥檙e much further along to where we want to be,鈥� Stone said. 鈥淲e still have some question marks hanging over us, but we鈥檙e definitely further long. Every week we鈥檝e been able to progress and get a little bit better.鈥�
Bemidji State 3, Winona State 0
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WSU 0 0 鈥� 0
BSU 0 3 鈥� 3
Bemidji State 鈥� Barthelt 46鈥�; Hodny 50鈥�; Huelsnitz 72鈥� (Wade)
Winona State 鈥� No scoring.
Saves 鈥� Alfieri (BSU) 3; Jumper (WSU) 11.
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