EAST GRAND FORKS, Minn. – Following a loss at home to Portland in September, Head Coach Chris Logan mentioned how his team has struggled to score at home, but his side used a four-goal second half to roll past Western Illinois, 5-0, on Thursday afternoon at EGF Senior High.
 
"We've been talking since we got home at the start of the week about finding a way to play well and win at home, and our team responded really well," said Logan on the match. "I thought it took us about 20 minutes to wake up but once we did and took control, we never let up. Today is the best we have played all year, and it's coming at the right time. I'm pleased with how we played."
 
Led by five goals from five different goal scorers, North Dakota (8-2-1, 2-0-0 Summit League) collected its second conference victory of the season and now has six points in the standings.
 
Cassie Giddings finished with a game-high three points, scoring a goal and adding an assist while Brittany Mueller struck for the second straight contest as well as nearly scoring another on a free kick from 40-yards out that hit the crossbar to pace the attack from the frontline. Something that Coach Logan is very happy about.
 
"They are just dangerous players," said Logan on Mueller and Giddings. "We thought Cassie [Giddings] was a little quieter in the first half, but she came out and scored a great goal and was very dangerous in the second."
 
Logan continued on Mueller.
 
"Brittany [Mueller] gives us something whenever she plays," stressed Logan. "It was just a great striker's instinct to get on the end of that second ball and a good finish."
 
Mimi Eiden, Oliva Knox, and Emma Bangert also struck for the Hawks in the victory as UND now has received goals from 12 different players this season, one of the top marks in Division I.
 
While it wasn't her busiest contest of the season, Olivia Swenson was solid in the cage again for the hosts as the senior recorded her seventh shutout of the season and the ninth overall clean sheet for the team. The Chaska, Minn., native had her finest save in the early moments of the second half with a diving stop from the top of the box following a deflected shot.
 
Western Illinois (2-9-1, 0-3-0 Summit League) looked strong at the beginning of the contest, recording multiple looks at the goal in the opening minutes.
 
Swenson made her first two saves in the opening ten minutes before the Fighting Hawks were forced to defend another early corner as the Fighting Leathernecks came out with an attack-first mentality.
 
As the first half wore on, however, UND began to take control of both the possession and the chances. After a couple of strong looks towards goal after a Katie Moller corner kick, Eiden broke through when a blocked Knox shot fell to her feet and the sophomore fired it home for her second tally of the season and a 1-0 UND lead in the 29th minute.
 
North Dakota continued to pressure in the first half as Moller had another pair of shots stymied by the keeper and a Mueller free kick from distance struck the crossbar to send the Fighting Hawks into the locker room with a 1-0 advantage.
 
The momentum carried over into the second half as Mueller found a loose ball in the box following a failed clear by WIU and chipped it into the net for a 2-0 lead. The goal is the second for the transfer in her many matches, scoring the game-winning tally against Oral Roberts on Sunday.
 
UND nearly made it a three-goal cushion just moments later when a great crossing attempt found the head of Eiden but her header was just over the bar to keep the advantage at two in the 61st minute.
 
Just seven minutes later, the Hawks found their third goal off a great tic-tac-toe passing play. Kaylee Kebba sent a kick into the box where Veronica Kessler headed it over to Giddings, the freshman quickly one-touched a pass to Knox, and the freshman combination worked to perfection as Knox made it 3-0 in the 68th minute. 
 
Leading 3-0, Swenson made her best save of the day when the senior made a huge stop at the top of the box with her body off a deflected shot to keep the clean sheet intact and preserve the three-goal advantage.
 
The big defensive play turned into offense as Giddings struck on the counterattack. The freshman went coast-to-coast and blistered a shot into the back of the cage for a beautiful individual effort tally to extend the lead to four.
 
Moments later, UND added a fifth goal when Bangert pressured the goalkeeper and forced a turnover right near the goal line and the freshman potted home the loose ball to put an exclamation point on the victory.
 
North Dakota returns to action on Sunday afternoon with another home contest at 1 p.m. The Fighting Hawks host in-state rival North Dakota State from East Grand Forks Senior High as UND looks to make it two straight victories over the Bison.
 
NOTES: The 2-0-0 start in conference play is the third time in program history (2003 and 2017) … UND moves to 8-0-0 this season when scoring at least one goal … Shots finished 25-13, including 10-6 on goal, in favor of UND … The five goals on Thursday gives UND a total of 31 this season, the seventh most in history and most in the DI era (2008-present) … The nine total shutouts are second most in school history and one away from matching the all-time mark set in 2004 … Olivia Swenson recorded her 10th career clean sheet which is third in program history … UND has never started 3-0-0 in conference play.