SUPERIOR, Wis. – Offense has, for the most part, come easily for the Yellowjackets during the 2024 season.
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Entering play Saturday, the Yellowjacket men led NCAA Division III in several offensive categories, including goals (95) and shots (507). So it should come as no surprise that offense was once again front and center Saturday, as the Yellowjackets closed out their regular season at Superior Choice Credit Union Stadium.
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On an unseasonably warm early November day, the Yellowjacket offense was again red-hot, finding the back of the net seven times in a 7-0 rout of Crown College.
With the win, the Yellowjackets close out the regular season with a perfect 14-0-0 mark in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play to go along with a 15-3-2 overall record. The Yellowjackets have won six matches in a row and 14 of their last 15.
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Jake Kidd (Superior, Wis./Superior), who leads the UMAC in goals in 2024, paced the Yellowjackets Saturday, notching a hat trick. It was his second hat trick of the week and third on the year, and he currently has 20 goals and 42 points on the campaign. Furthermore, Kidd broke former Yellowjacket forward Blake Perry's single season goal record. Perry set the program mark at 19 goals in the 2021 season.
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Alex Paredes (Mequon, Wis./Homestead) got the start in goal for the Yellowjackets and made two saves in 69:26 of work. He earned the win, and his record improves to 11-3-2.
Patrick Sessions (Brighton, England/Brighton, Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College) came on in relief of Paredes and finished the match, but didn't register any saves.
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Match Notes
- The Yellowjackets have now won 19 straight against Crown, dating back to August 29, 2008.
- Things started slowly in the match, with neither team generating much in the way of offense early.
- Kidd got things started, scoring his 18th goal of the year in the 31st minute to give the Yellowjackets the lead.
- Just under four minutes later Kidd struck again, scoring an unassisted goal in the 34th minute to make it 2-0.
- Early in the second half Kidd competed the hat trick, scoring his third of the match at 49:35.
- Felipe Oliveira (Belo Horizonte, Brazil/Colegio Soma) converted a penalty kick in the 52nd minute, to make the Yellowjacket lead 4-0.
- Phillip Eriksen (Skjetten, Norway/Lorenskog) made it a 5-0 game with his second goal of the season in the 70th minute.
- The Yellowjackets added two more goals late in the match. The first came from Finley Purnell (Northampton, England/Southam College) at 82:14, and the second came from Jordan Aultman (Esko, Minn./Cloquet), who found the back of the net with 12 seconds to play. Purnell's goal was his third, while Aultman's was his second of the year.
- Three different Yellowjackets – Josh Bellamy (High Wycombe, England/FAB Football Academy), Rowan Wagner (McFarland, Wis./McFarland) and Philipp Jobst (Pulheim, Germany/Deutsche Schule Shanghai Pudong) registered assists.
- The Yellowjackets had 27 shots attempted, with 15 ending up on goal. Crown attempted six shots, with two ending up on goal.
- Superior Choice Credit Union Stadium agrees with the Yellowjackets. Since its opening October 12, the Yellowjackets are 5-0 and have outscored opponents 33-1.
The Yellowjackets will be the No. 1 seed when the UMAC playoffs get underway Wednesday, Nov. 6. The Yellowjackets will play host to the No. 4 seed, Northwestern, at Superior Choice Credit Union Stadium. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
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