MANKATO, Minn. — No. 7 Minnesota State will travel to No.15 Augustana and Concordia-St. Paul to open regular season conference play. The Mavericks will take on the Vikings on Friday at 4:00 p.m. and the Golden Bears at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
Last week, MSU battled No. 20 Central Missouri and Grand Valley State going 1-1 on the weekend. Sophomore Avery Korsching delivered Friday’s only score in the 90th minute to sink the Jennies. UCM out-shot the Mavericks 17-11 while the ball was in MSU’s defensive zone. However, one last push led by sophomore Kiera Laney allowed the Mavericks’ to take advantage of their final scoring chance. The Mavericks followed their Friday thriller with a tough loss with the difference being decided by a GVSU penalty kick in the 73rd minute of Sunday’s affair. MSU will head into this weekend with an overall record of 2-1-1.
Facing AU: Heading into the 34th matchup with Augustana, the Mavericks are a dominant 30-3 in their last 33 matches against the Vikings. Augustana will come into Friday’s match as the 20th-ranked program on the United Soccer Coaches Top-25 Poll. Last season, AU finished third in the 2022 NSIC rankings with a 10-4-1 conference record and an 11-7-2 overall record.
Scouting the Vikings: Augustana’s offense is led by seniors Grace Douglas and Hope Korte. Douglas is coming off a productive 2022 junior year having started 10 matches while registering two goals and nine points landing fourth on the Augie points list last season. Kote has registered two goals in four games this year. Her red-hot start has launched her as the top threat on the Vikings’ offense. In goal, senior Jillian Barkus holds the line for Augustana starting all four games this season. She owns a .895 save percentage and an impressive 0.50 goals-against average for a 2-1-1 record.
Facing CSP: Heading into the 23rd matchup with Concordia, the Mavericks are 20-1-1 in their last 22 matches against the Golden Bears. Last season, CSP finished eighth in the 2022 NSIC rankings with a 7-4-4 conference record and a 7-7-5 overall record.
Scouting the Golden Bears: The CSP offense is led by seniors Katie Anderson and Corynn Grabau. Anderson finished the 2022 campaign as CSP’s goal and point leader finishing the season with seven goals and 16 points. Grabau finished the season fourth in offensive stats registering two goals and an assist for five points. In goal, junior Jessi Jordan has started three games for the Golden Bears. She owns a .692 save percentage and a 1.60 goals-against average for a 1-2-0 record.
