Setting the Scene: After stepping out of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play for a game, the Southwest Minnesota State soccer team (1-6-1, 0-4-1 NSIC) will return to NSIC action when they take on Wayne State Friday at 4:30 p.m. in Wayne, Neb., and Augustana Sunday at 1 p.m. in Sioux Falls.
Sizing up the competition: Wayne State (3-3-3, 0-2-3 NSIC) is coming off a string of NSIC match-ups—all of which have ended in a tie or loss for the Wildcats. The most recent game took place Sunday when Wayne traveled to Upper Iowa and tied the Peacocks 2-2. Megan Dias leads WSC with seven goals on the season. She is followed by Kelsey Meyer with three goals and four assists.
Augustana (3-5-2, 2-2-1 NSIC) is coming off a weekend of NSIC losses, both of which went into extra periods. On Saturday, Upper Iowa handed Augie a 2-1 double overtime loss while Winona shut-out the Vikings in a 1-0 decision after one extra period. Katie Shandri is statistically leading Augie with four goals and one assist on the season.
For the Record: SMSU and Wayne State have met every year since 1997, resulting in a 10-8-1 record in the Mustangs' favor.
Kendra Olchefske recorded the shut-out last year when SMSU defeated Wayne State 2-0 in Marshall.
Augustana is leading the Mustang-Viking series with a 7-3-1 record. The two teams first played one another in 2000, when Augie defeated SMSU 4-1. Last year Augie handed SMSU another loss with the same score of 4-1.
Last time out: Minnesota State, Mankato dominated Southwest Minnesota State on Thursday earning a 9-0 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference victory in Mankato. The Mavericks scored the game's first goal in the fifth minute and then added three goals within a 12-minute span late in the first half to build a 4-0 halftime lead. MSU finished the game with 21 shots on goal, while SMSU was limited to just two shots on goal by
Autumn Hayes and
Amber Williamson.
Senior Experience: SMSU has plenty of leadership experience this season with six seniors on the roster including goalie, Kendra Olechefske (Albert Lea, Minn.),
Tatum Borstad(Coppell, Tex.),
Jenna Perske (Sartell, Minn.),
Kate Voigt (Hudson, Wis.), and
Liz Judkins (Bemidji, Minn.). This group of seniors has charted three-year overall record of 8-41-4.
Stay connected: Stay connected with SMSU soccer all season long at
www.smsumustangs.com. The Mustangs are also on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/smsumustangs and Twitter at
www.twitter.com/smsumustangs.
