SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- The Augustana women's soccer team will open up the gates to Morstad Field in Sioux Falls on Friday where they will host the Fort Hays State Tigers in its season opener at 5 PM. On Sunday, the Vikings will host another nonconference opponent in Central Missouri at 1 PM. 

The Games
While the Vikings were selected to finish second in the NSIC in 2019, the Tigers and Jennies were also selected to finish at the top of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). The Tigers were selected to finish third in the MIAA and the Jennies were selected to finish second in the conference.

The Tigers
The Tigers are coming off of a 2018 campaign that saw them finish 11-7-2 with an 8-3 conference record. After qualifying for the MIAA conference tournament, the Tigers defeated Missouri Western 3-0, before falling to Central Oklahoma by the same score. This is just the second all-time meeting meeting between the Vikings and Tigers. Neither team has scored against the other as the teams tied in double overtime on Sept. 8 2017.

The Jennies
Unlike the Tigers, the Vikings are all too familiar with Central Region foe Central Missouri. The Jennies defeated the Vikings twice last season en route to a 19-5-1 record that saw them win the Central Region Championship before falling to Grand Valley State in the NCAA Tournament. The Jennies have never lost to the Vikings and have eliminated them in the Central Regional Tournament the past two seasons. 

The Vikings
The Augustana women's soccer team comes into the 2019 season looking for their third-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and their fifth in six years. Twenty four Vikings will be returning from the 2018 team that went 12-6-3 overall and 10-3-2 in conference action. The Vikings also welcome nine newcomers for the 2019 season.

"We're super excited about this year," head coach Brandon Barkus said about the 2019 season. "I think our young players have been stepping up, our older players really look empowered and mature, and I'm really anxious to see what they are going to bring to open the season at home this year."

One Last Thing
Sophomore midfielder Alexis Legg and senior defender Morgan Moe were tabbed as NSIC Preseason Players to Watch for the 2019 season. Legg led the Vikings in points (23), goals (11), and game winning goals (3) last season. She also finished seventh in the conference in points and earned NSIC Freshman of the Year honors. Moe started 19 games on defense and logged 1,916 minutes on a lockdown Viking's defense that posted 10 shutouts.