Salopek, Ranallo help Kent State soccer team start fast in conference play

Allen Moff, Record-Courier
·4 min read

Kent State swept the weekly Mid-American Conference women's soccer awards after opening league play with a pair of victories last week.

Freshman Kelsey Salopek earned Offensive Player of the Week honors, while junior Dalaney Ranallo was named Defensive Player of the Week after leading the Golden Flashes to triumphs over Ohio and rival Akron.

Salopek notched three of the Flashes’ four goals on the week. She scored twice against the Bobcats on Thursday, then added a tally in Sunday’s 2-0 win over the Zips. Salopek is the only KSU player who has scored more than one goal this season.

Ranallo finished with two assists, both to Salopek on free kicks, and helped lead the Kent State defense to a pair of shutouts. Akron was unable to get a single shot on goal against the Flashes.

After struggling through the non-conference portion of the 2022 schedule, Kent State (2-5-2) is now the only 2-0 team at the MAC. The Flashes will visit Western Michigan (1-4-4, 1-0-1) on Thursday, then host Toledo (1-5-3, 0-1-1) on Sunday.

Field hockey: Kent State blanks Ball State

Kent State (4-4) moved to 2-0 in MAC play by blanking Ball State 7-0 last Friday. The Flashes rolled up a 16-2 advantage in shots on goal.

Senior Maria Cambra Soler scored two goals to lead Kent State. Senior Larissa Balachick scored just 1:27 into the contest, and later added two assists. Freshman Patricia Strunk finished with a goal and an assist, while junior Katie Wuerstle added a pair of helpers.

The Flashes are tied with Miami for first place in the MAC. They will visit Ohio (5-3, 1-1) on Friday, then step out of conference play to take on Ohio State (3-5) on Sunday in Columbus.

Men's Golf: Flashes second at Windon Memorial

Freshman Ben MacLean and senior Cade Breitenstine posted top-10 finishes while leading Kent State to a tie for second place at the Windon Memorial, held Monday and Tuesday at Evanston Golf Club in Skokie, Ill.

The Flashes entered Tuesday's final round with a one-stroke lead, but host Northwestern shot 10-under to finish at 2-under for the tournament. The Flashes and Little Rock were nine strokes back at +7.

MacLean opened with rounds of 67 and 68 on Monday, then shot 73 on Tuesday and finished in a tie for fourth place at 2-under 208. Breitenstine closed with a pair of 69s, and wound up seventh at 1-under. Senior Chris Vandette shot 2-under 68 in round one and finished in a tie for 28th at 5-over.

After a rough outing in the 2022-23 season opener, the Flashes have now finished second in their last two events.

WINDON MEMORIAL

(At Evanston Golf Club in Skokie, Ill. Par 70) Team Standings: 1. Northwestern –2. 2. Kent State, Little Rock +7.4. Marquette, North Florida +8. 6. Memphis +11. 7. Indiana +13. 8. Wisconsin +14. 9. Oral Roberts +24. 10. Augusta +33. 11. South Florida +34. 12. Loyola Maryland +40. 13. Cal Poly +45. 14. UC Davis +47.

Kent State: T4. Ben MacLean -1 (67-68-73). 7. Cade Breitenstine E (71-69-69). T28. Chris Vandette +5 (68-73-74). T43. Jordan Gilkison +8 (71-72-75). T54. Bryce Reed +12 (76-70-76).

Football: Haynes directing dominant Minnesota defense

Former Kent State All-MAC defensive back and head coach Paul Haynes is currently serving as the co-defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach at Minnesota, which is ranked 21st in the nation with a 4-0 record.

Former Kent State head coach Paul Haynes is directing a Minnesota Golden Gophers defense that's among the best in the nation.
Former Kent State head coach Paul Haynes is directing a Minnesota Golden Gophers defense that's among the best in the nation.

The Golden Gophers defense has surrendered just 24 points in four games this season. Last week Minnesota opened Big Ten play by holding host Michigan State to 240 total yards while rolling to a 34-7 victory.

Haynes was promoted to co-defensive coordinator last February by Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck. He joined Fleck’s staff in 2020 after spending two seasons as defensive backs coach at Michigan State. Haynes was head coach at Kent State from 2013-17, following a highly successful run as a defensive assistant at Ohio State.

Haynes was a walk-on at Kent State who wound up earning All-MAC honors in 1990 and 1991.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Kent State's Salopek, Ranallo earn MAC women's soccer weekly awards