BEMIDJI – Staring in the face of a two-loss weekend, the Bemidji State women’s soccer team got an equalizer from an unlikely freshman.
Grace Schwoch, a rookie defender out of Stillwater, tied the game against U-Mary in the 62nd minute at 1-1. The score held until time ran out, splitting the points between the Marauders and the Beavers at Chet Anderson Stadium.
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The draw followed a 1-0 home loss against Minot State on Friday, which snapped BSU’s five-match winning streak.
“It’s huge, even mentally,” head coach Jim Stone said. “If you come away from this weekend with zero points, that’s a tough pill to swallow. Then you have a greater problem with confidence. That goal was huge for us, and we need to take it to help us get to that next level.”
U-Mary freshman Maciee Burke paid off a flurry of first-half scoring chances in the 42nd minute.
Kira Hockley sent a long through ball into the edge of the attacking third for Burke, who beat BSU goalkeeper Sonia Alfieri to the ball and lobbed a chip shot over her head just outside the 18-yard box.
It was the Marauders’ sixth shot on target in the opening 45 minutes. U-Mary took a 1-0 lead into halftime, but it could’ve been worse for Bemidji State.
MaLiah Burke had a pair of near goals in the first half. Alfieri turned aside her close-angle shot in the 11th minute, then again stopped her straight-on shot in the 20th minute.
Alfieri was called on to make a save on Hockley’s shot just outside the penalty area in the 14th minute. Hockley had another chance on a corner kick in the 29th minute, which led to Alfieri’s fifth save.
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“We started the game in a 4-5-1, then we completely switched into a 3-5-2 in the second half,” Schwoch said. “It’s a very different game in a 4-5-1, it’s more defensive. When we have the 3-5-2, we can push really hard. … In the second half, we were more awake, we wanted it more than them. That was the big difference between halves as well.”
The Beavers found more of a rhythm offensively in the second half, and it paid off in the 62nd minute. Maggie Kramer’s corner kick was sent into the middle of a cluster in front of the U-Mary goal. Schwoch took a pair of hacks at it before connecting with the equalizing goal.
The goal was Schwoch’s second in her freshman season.
“I kind of just saw it and kicked it, honestly,” Schwoch said. “I was hoping it went in, and I saw it go in when I looked up.”
While Bemidji State shifted its tactical approach, Stone also witnessed his players compete with more urgency over the final 45 minutes.
“Part of it was just a paradigm shift in how we approach the game,” Stone said. “We have to fight for every loose ball, fight for every inch on this field. That was missing in the first half. We tactically changed things up, but the biggest piece was upstairs.”
“We just need to play with heart, because when we do, we want it so much more,” Schwoch said. “In the second half, we played with more desire than we did in the first half. If we want to win, we have to keep up that energy and the confidence in ourselves.”
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The Beavers (8-4-1, 6-2-1 NSIC) are tied with Augustana (7-4-2, 6-2-1 NSIC) for second place in the NISC at 19 points, with Minnesota State (9-1-4, 8-0-2 NSIC) holding down first place with 26 points. U-Mary (7-2-3, 5-1-3 NSIC) is in fourth place with 18 points.
The Marauders would’ve hopped BSU and AU with a win on Sunday.
“All of the teams, no matter if you’re in fifth or you’re in first, are so good,” Schwoch said. “Any team can beat any team on any given day. This game was really important for us to stay in second place.”
Sunday was the 12th time Bemidji State conducted the Cheryl Smyth Memorial Cancer Awareness Game. Smyth was a devoted BSU soccer parent for her daughter, Kara. Smyth died in 2011 from lung cancer. She was part of the 1% of patients who develop lung without ever smoking.
The Cheryl Smyth Memorial Cancer Awareness Game also honors Liz Engel, the mother of 2017 Beavers captain Natalie Engel. Liz died of lung cancer in 2022. A year later, Nick Peterson, father of team captain Halle Peterson, died of gastric cancer.
This year’s Cheryl Smyth Memorial Cancer Awareness Game came with an added layer of emotion. Bemidji State, once again, honored the passing of head volleyball coach Kevin Ulmer, who lost his three-year battle with Multiple Myeloma this fall.
“It’s really what we’re about and what we want to be,” Stone said. “We want to be a family, and family never forgets. It’s important to have those traditions and remember loved ones who have moved on. It also shows the current players what we’re all about. It’s not always going to be about wins and losses when you have a bigger picture out there to consider. I hope it sinks in with them.”
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Bemidji State 1, U-Mary 1
MARY 1 0 – 1
BSU 0 1 – 1
Bemidji State – Schwoch 62’ (Kramer).
U-Mary – Mac. Burke 42’ (Hockley, Park).
Saves – Alfieri (BSU) 6; Fischer (MARY) 1.
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