The South Dakota State women's soccer team stayed alive with its 6-1 win at Omaha on Friday.

The Jacks entered the game in need of a win and some help to qualify for The Summit League Championship next weekend. SDSU did its job.

Diana Potterveld, who scored SDSU's lone goals in the previous two games, made it three-straight games with a goal. Potterveld, gaining a reputation for her late-game heroics, limited the drama on Friday as she scored early and often, the first on a rebound in the fourth minute.

As if three goals in three games were not enough, Potterveld scored again in the 18th minute. Christa Nyblom sent a through ball behind the defense to an open Potterveld, who finished the chance once again.

The Jacks led 2-0 at halftime.

SDSU dominated the first half in shots (8-4), shots on goal (6-2) and corner kicks (3-0). SDSU was whistled for three fouls and one offsides, while Omaha was whistled for two fouls and two offsides.

Potterveld led the attack with three shots, all on goal, and two goals. Nyblom assisted on the second goal and attempted one shot.

Elisa Stamatakis, back in goal for the Jacks, made two saves in the first half.

The second half started in frenzy, as Omaha scored 38 seconds into the half to narrow the margin to 2-1.

The Jacks responded one minute later, as Megan Kingston headed a rebound into the goal to push SDSU's lead back to two goals. Delaney Ratcliffe assisted the goal.

Then, in the 51st minute, Potterveld completed her hat trick with her third goal of the game on a break away after a steal. Dani Patterson, fresh off of being named Defensive Player of the Week, was credited with the assist.

It is the first hat-trick since Kelsey Worcester scored all three SDSU goals in a 3-1 win at University of Mary (N.D.) in 2004.

The game was quiet for about 15 minutes before Stacy Guijarro got in on the action, extending the lead to 5-1. Darci Miller recorded the assist on a long pass behind the defense.

Nyblom closed out the scoring in the 77th minute with a penalty kick goal, SDSU's first penalty kick conversion since 2010. Nyblom's three-point day propelled her to 10th on the SDSU career scoring leaderboard with 38 points.

"I am very proud of this team and how it persevered through this season," head coach Lang Wedemeyer said. "It was great to get some fantastic finishing today and now we just have to wait and hope for some help to keep our season going."

The six goals are the most since 2010, as is the five-goal victory margin.

SDSU held the advantage in shots (15-11), shots on goal (10-6) and corner kicks (6-1). SDSU was whistled for seven fouls and five offsides, while Omaha was whistled for six fouls and three offsides.

Potterveld led the attack with four shots, all on goal, and the hat-trick. Kingston attempted two shots, one on goal, and scored one goal.

Stamatakis made five saves in 76:22 in goal.

Thanks to her fourth-minute goal, Potterveld was credited with the game-winning goal for the third-straight game. It is the first time in school history that one player scored three-straight game-winning goals. Her 10 points in a three-game span are the most since Jennifer Briggs recorded 15 points in a three-game span in 2003. Her eight goals are the most in a single season since Erin Kasmarik scored 10 in 2008.

Potterveld scored 12 of her 19 points in the final five regular season games.

The Jacks improved to 6-9-2 overall, 4-3-1 in The Summit League and 4-0-1 in its last five games.

Omaha dropped to 3-14 overall, 3-4 in the conference.

As for now, SDSU plays a waiting game as it watches the league scoreboard to determine if it qualifies for The Summit League Championship.

 

SDSU qualifies for The Summit League Championship with: North Dakota State loss at Omaha on Sunday OR Western Illinois 0-1-1/0-2-0 weekend (at Fort Wayne, at Oakland) OR Oakland 0-2-0 weekend (vs. IUPUI, vs. WIU).