What happened?
Before Sunday’s match, Iowa State came off a tie in Des Moines to Drake, bringing its record to 1-1-1.
The Cyclones then headed back to Ames to host Northern Iowa as a potential game to get back in the win column. But heading into this game, UNI came off of a huge 5-1 win over Western Illinois that had looked to bring the Panthers momentum heading into Ames.
That ended up not being the case, as Iowa State would go on to throttle the Panthers 6-1 in a game that would end up never being close.
The Cyclones ended up outshooting Northern Iowa 20-12, leading in both periods along with having three goals in each period as well.
The first goal of the game was scored by Iowa State midfielder Seulgi Lee at 9:53. This goal by Lee would result in her first goal scored as a member of the Cyclones after spending a pair of seasons at Barton Community College and Michigan Tech.
“I’m very happy that I was able to help get the team the win,” Lee said. “I was also very happy to get my first goal wearing the Cyclones t-shirt.”
Shortly after Lee’s goal, another Iowa State player obtained her first goal of not just the season, but of her collegiate career. Senior midfielder Hannah Shaw had long been awaiting her first collegiate goal that came at a great time, and put her team up 2-0 nearly 20 minutes into the game.
Following Shaw’s goal, the first half scoring for the Cyclones would end at 24:56 with defender Isabella Agrusso netting her first career goal, giving Iowa State an ensuing 3-0 lead over Northern Iowa.
But for the Panthers, they knew that getting shutout this game wasn’t going to be an option. UNI defender Macy Smith knocked down a goal just over the Cyclones goalkeeper’s outstretched hands, making it a 3-1 game going into halftime.
In the second half, the scoring onslaught would continue to commence. Shaw netted her second goal of the game less than three minutes out of the half.
The last two goals of the game would come further down the line, with the first being from forward Morgan Furmaniak at 65:02. This goal would give Furmaniak her third goal scored of the season.
Shortly after Furmaniak’s goal, the final goal of the night would be put in by defender Ella Zimmerman off of a corner kick that would end up being her first collegiate goal while ending the scoring ultimately at 6-1.
Who stood out?
In the Cyclones’ 6-1 win, the player of the game for Iowa State far and away was Shaw.
The senior led the team with two goals in the Cyclones’ match against the Panthers Sunday night, with both goals being the first two she has ever scored in her collegiate career.
For Shaw, these two goals meant the world to her, especially since the career she has had thus far. In the five seasons she has been a member of the team, she has dealt with numerous injuries that have sidelined her.
“I have been injured for four years straight now, so for this to be my fifth year and score two goals to help my team win is everything that I could’ve wanted,” Shaw said.
Iowa State head coach Matt Fannon has praised Shaw’s ability to overcome the many injuries in her career and end up putting on a performance like she did Sunday night.
“I absolutely love [Shaw],” Fannon said. “Just a wonderful young woman that has worked so hard to put herself in a place where she can even be on the field.”
What to look forward to?
With this win, Fannon celebrated his 100th career win as a head coach, and he gave all the credit to his team that had been preparing to show out in a game like this.
“I think the most important piece is the way that we played,” Fannon said. “We’ve been asking the women to get their heads around the game model and there have been a lot of new people with a lot of things to get right with that and I think tonight they did it really well.”
The six goals that his team put up Sunday night was the highest number of goals scored in a single game for Iowa State since 2012, when the Cyclones put up seven goals in two games against South Dakota and their counterparts Sunday against UNI.
Iowa State now moves to a record of 2-1-1 on the season and will hope to ride this momentum before heading to Memphis, Tennessee to take on No. 10 Memphis at 8 p.m. Sunday.
