SIOUX FALLS - Returning to action in their conference schedule, University of Sioux Falls Soccer takes to the road for a pair of conference matches this weekend. The Cougars (0-3-1, 0-1-0 NSIC) square off with Northern State (3-0-0, 1-0-0 NSIC) in Aberdeen, S.D. on Saturday, Sept. 17 at 1 p.m. To close their weekend road swing, USF travels to MSU Moorhead (0-1-0, 1-2-0 NSIC) on Sunday, Sept. 18 for a 1 p.m. contest.
How to follow this weekend's games
- Live video for both games this weekend will be streamed through Stretch Internet and are available at USFCougars.com/watch
- Live Stats for Saturday's game vs. Northern State are available HERE
- Live Stats for Sunday's game vs. MSU Moorhead are available HERE
Keeping up with the Cougars
Second leg
- With new a scheduling format for the 2016 season, Sioux Falls splits their weekend against their NSIC South Division opponents
- USF hosts Minnesota State on Friday, Sept. 23 at 6 p.m. before they travel to Concordia-St. Paul for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday, Sept. 25.
Series Histories
- Sioux Falls looks to snap a four-game winless streak when they square off with Northern State on Saturday, taking in a 0-3-1 record since the Cougars joined the NSIC in 2012
- Of the four matches with NSU, three have gone to overtime
- USF earned a 1-1 tie in 2012 but fell in overtime the next two seasons
- Last season, Alexandria Scott scored the game-tying goal in the 76th minute, but NSU tacked on two goals in the final 12 minutes of the game for a 4-2 win
- Sioux Falls holds a 2-1-1 lead in their series against MSU Moorhead, securing a point in the last three games
- The Cougars suffered a 2-0 loss in their first meeting in 2012, then recorded consecutive one-goal victories the following two years
- In last year's matchup, Morgan Perkins stood tall in goal and posted 16 saves to ensure USF would come away with a point in a 0-0 draw
Scouting the competition: Northern State
- Northern State is the only team in the NSIC to win each of their games this season, entering the weekend with a 3-0 record, including a 1-0 mark in NSIC play
- NSU leads the league in total shots, averaging 35.7 per game, and that has led to a league-best 6.33 goals per game average
- In three game, NSU has allowed two goals, placing them third in the NSIC with a 0.67 goals against average
- Reigning NSIC offensive player of the week Anna Bondy leads the NSU offense with an NSIC leading 10 goals and 21 points
- The Wolves have two more players in the top 10 of the points leaderboard, each with at least two goals
- Stacey Cavill has started all three games in goal for the Wolves and owns a 3-0 record with a 0.47 goals against average
Scouting the competition: MSU Moorhead
- MSU Moorhead enters the weekend with a 1-2 overall record and a 0-1 mark in the NSIC
- The Dragons have scored two goals in three games, tied for fewest in the league
- MSU Moorhead averages 10.67 shots per game, ninth in the NSIC
- Jessica Johnson and Annika Greeney each scored one goal for MSUM
- In goal, Reagan VonBerge has played the most minutes and owns an 0-2 record while Kennedy Rodgers has the Dragons' lone win in 45 minutes of action
Cougars score twice in NSIC opener, fall in heartbreaking fashion
- USF tallied two first half goals in last Friday's NSIC opener against Southwest Minnesota State, but the Mustangs pulled out a victory in overtime
- Jackie Montes scored her first goal of the season when she found the back of the net in the 20th minute to answer SMSU's first tally
- Later in the first half, Brooke Jensen scored to tie the game back at 2-2 in the 35th minute
- USF appeared to have scored in the second half and take their first lead of the game, but it was called back for offsides
- Southwest Minnesota State scored in the 97th minute, scoring after a blocked shot for the 3-2 win
Perkins and Campbell picked as players to watch
- Sophomore goalkeeper Morgan Perkins and freshman forward Carley Campbell were chosen as USF's players to watch in the NSIC preseason release
- Perkins returns as in 2016 after starting all 17 games last season to finish with a 2-14-1 record
- A native of Liberty, Mo., Perkins made 127 saves and posted a 2.59 goals against average in 2015
- Campbell enters her freshman season from Monument, Colo. where she played at Palmer Ridge High School
- She led her high school squad to consecutive state playoff appearances while she scored 10 goals and added 10 assists in her junior and senior seasons
Sioux Falls returns five goal scorers from 2015
- All but one Cougar goal scorer returns for 2016, combining for eight of the team's nine goals last season
- Lola Weiss, Alexandria Scott and Chessa Novotny all found the back of the net twice in 2015
- Alexa D'Acunto and Brooke Jensen each scored once last season, notching the two gamewinners for the Cougars
- Weiss and Jensen ranked 1-2 on the team with 29 and 26 total shots, respectively, while Novotny led with 15 shots on goal
- Jensen and Jackie Montes both logged two assists and Montes was fourth on the team with 20 total shots, behind Novotny's 23.
Goosen continues building process in second season as head coach
- USF Soccer head coach Brittany Goosen enters her second season at the helm of the program
- She owns a 2-75-2 overall record at USF
- Goosen equaled the team's previous win total with a 2-14-1 record in her first season as a head coach
- The Olathe, Kan. native held coaching positions at Missouri-Kansas City as an assistant in 2014 and at Emporia State as a graduate assistant from 2012-13
- Goosen played four years at the University of Nebraska, starting at as a center back from 2007-2011
