SIOUX FALLS – Wrapping up a three-game home stand as they dive into the heart of conference play, University of Sioux Falls Soccer hosts a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference opponents this weekend. The Cougars (2-2-0, 1-0-0 NSIC) welcome MSU Moorhead (0-2-1, 0-1-0 NSIC) on Saturday, Sept. 16 for an 11 a.m. contest at USF Sports Complex. Closing their home stand, USF hosts Northern State (2-1-0, 1-0-0 NSIC) on Sunday, Sept. 17 with kickoff set for 1 p.m.
 
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USF tops SMSU for first time, splits second straight weekend
Behind a dominant offensive performance, USF Soccer defeated Southwest Minnesota State, 2-0, in their NSIC opener last Friday. McKayla Philippi netted the game-winner in the 75th minute and Morgan Lovato added an insurance goal with a strike from 30 yards out. The victory over SMSU was historic for the Cougars, being the first victory over their NSIC travel partner since joining the league in 2012 and it was their first conference-opening victory in that same span. In their final non-conference game, USF pushed now-ranked Missouri Western State to the edge before falling, 4-2, on Sunday. Chessa Novotny gave the Cougars a lead with her first goal of the season and Carley Campbell tied the game at 2-2 in the second half before Missouri Western's offense powered through to the tow-goal victory.
 
Early season offense has USF on pace to break D2 era records
Highlighted by USF's single game record for shots in their win over Southwest Minnesota State, the Cougar offense has taken a big step forward early in 2017. With seven goals on the season, the Cougars are already over the halfway point to breaking the Sioux Falls Division II era record for goals in a season. The 2013 USF Soccer team scored 13 goals, the most in their Division II era while six different Cougars have combined for seven goals thus far in 2013. The mark of six different goal scorers is already tied for the second-most in a season behind the 2013 team's eight players who tallied a goal for USF. Individually, Lauren LaFavre's five points this year (two goals, one assist) are the eighth-most in a season in USF history, through just four games. Chessa Novotny's team-leading two assists are tied for third in USF history while LaFavre and Novotny rank second and fourth, respectively, on the USF D2 career points chart. Last weekend, three of the four goals were first career goals for USF players McKayla Philippi, Morgan Lovato and Carley Campbell.
 
USF defense, Perkins record seventh shutout of past three seasons
Since head coach Brittany Domino took over the USF Soccer program in 2015, the Cougar defense has improved each season and with another shutout in their NSIC-opening win over SMSU, USF has put together seven shutouts in three seasons. Earning the decision in those seven shutouts is junior goalkeeper Morgan Perkins. Before Domino's tenure at USF, the Cougars had three shutouts over three seasons. Domino revamped the defense and USF posted two shutouts in 2015, then four in 2016. With a shutout in their Friday-evening win over SMSU, the Cougars have a seventh clean sheet in Domino's tenure with Perkins in goal for each one.
  
Series Histories
                Vs. MSU Moorhead
After a loss in the first-ever meeting between the two programs in 2012, the Cougars have not lost again to MSU Moorhead. Culminating to 10 points after the last four matches, USF owns a 3-1-1 record against the Dragons. In Brittany Domino's time at USF, she has a 1-0-1 record against MSUM, winning a 1-0 match last year on Alexa D'Acunto's game-winning goal. USF is 1-1-0 against MSU Moorhead at home, where they host the Dragons on Saturday.
 
                Vs. Northern State
Heading into Sunday's game against Northern State, USF is seeking their first win against the Wolves in what will be the sixth matchup with NSU. The Cougars are 0-4-1 against Northern State in their previous five matchups, including a 0-1-1 mark in home games. Most recently, the Cougars dropped a 1-0 decision last year. The first three games in the series history against Northern State went to overtime, where USF tied NSU in 2012 and suffered losses in 2013 and 2014.
 
USF picked 13th in NSIC preseason poll
Coming off a year in which the Cougars recorded the most wins and points since their move to NCAA Division II, USF Soccer was picked to finish a program-best 13th in the NSIC preseason coaches' poll. The Cougars finished 14th in the final 2016 standings with a 3-10-2 record in NSIC play. Of the Cougars' 10 conference losses last season, eight were by a one-goal difference. The conference coaches took notice of USF Soccer's improvement under third-year head coach Brittany Domino and USF was slated 13th in the NSIC preseason coaches' poll, the highest in the poll since they joined the league in 2012. The Cougars collected 51 points in the poll while Minnesota State was the favorite with 11 first-place votes and USF's crosstown rival Augustana picked up the remaining five first-place nods to help them to second place.
 
Perkins headlines improving USF defense, named defensive player to watch
Entering her third season at USF, goalkeeper Morgan Perkins anchors the Cougars defense, which has made great strides during the past two seasons. A 5-foot-7 Liberty, Mo. native, Perkins was tabbed as USF's defensive player to watch in the NSIC preseason release. Starting all 18 games last season, Perkins had a .810 save percentage and posted four shutouts, which ranked third in the league last year. She ranked in the top 10 of five different categories among NSIC goalkeepers. Perkins finished the 15-game conference season with a 1.28 goals against average, more than a one-goal improvement from 2015.
 
Back line continues to settle in, mixes experience with youth
In two years under head coach and former defensive standout Brittany Domino, USF has dropped its total goals against average from 3.33 with 61 goals allowed to 1.49 with 28 goals. In conference play, USF allowed just 20 goals, ranking them ninth in the NSIC, and their four shutouts tied them for seventh in the 16-team league. While they will be replacing a centerback from last year's starting XI, the bulk of their back line remains intact. At outside back, Lily McKown returns for her sophomore campaign after earning All-NSIC honorable mention accolades as a freshman. Emma Trittin is a three-year starter as a centerback, logging more than 3,000 minutes on the back line in her time in the purple and white. Becca Schmitz figures to move forward more in 2017, but she was starter for 18 games last season, many of which she manned the outside back position opposite McKown.
 
Newcomers will add depth to the experience the Cougars have fostered over the past two seasons and three first-time USF players should immediately fill in those gaps. Lindsey Power is locked in to a starting spot at the centerback position opposite Trittin, and the freshman can contribute offensively with services on set pieces. Transfer Kori Fink comes in with two years of experience as a defender at Nebraska Wesleyan and dynamic outside back/forward Morgan Lovato will see time as her speed poses a scoring threat from the back line. Erin O'Tool gained experience her freshman season, seeing time in 10 games and Abbie Holter joins the talented freshman class as another capable defender.
 
Leader of the pride
Entering her third season at the helm of University of Sioux Falls Soccer, Brittany Domino looks to continue the growth of her program. Despite the 7-28-4 record in three seasons, Domino has turned the Cougars around with eight one-goal losses in 2016 and cutting her team's goals allowed by more than 30 in two years. A four-year starter for University of Nebraska, Domino is assisted by Kyle Halfpop and Gabe Wortman.