Aberdeen, S.D. – Friday and Sunday will mark the first weekend of NSIC action for Northern State women's soccer as they start conference play on the road at Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. The Wolves and Beavers will kick-off at 3 P.M. on Friday afternoon, and Sunday's match with the Golden Eagles is scheduled for a 1 P.M. start time. The match at UMC will conclude a stretch of five consecutive away games for Northern to start the season.

Game & Fan Information

• Links to watch the games, follow live stats, and view the NSU game notes are available above

Northern State Storylines

• Northern State enters Friday's NSIC opener with a record of 2-1
• The Wolves opened the season with a pair of 1-0 victories over Montana State Billings and Black Hills State before falling to Southwest Baptist in another 1-0 decision last Sunday afternoon
• Megan Fastenau and Mia Zagorski lead the team with one goal a piece
• Summer Carlson and Zoe Boughton lead the team with one assist each
• Alexus Townsend has started all three games in goal for the Wolves, recording two shutouts while grabbing 12 saves and a 0.923 save percentage
• Townsend's two shutouts is tied for 20^th nationally, and her 0.923 save percentage is tied for 31^st nationally among individual goalkeepers
• Northern is 3-2 in their last five NSIC openers, but have lost their last two games

Bemidji State Storylines

• Bemidji State enters Friday's NSIC opener with a record of 1-1-1
• The Beavers opened the 2022 season at No. 9 in the United Soccer Coaches Top-25 Preseason Poll; BSU dropped out of the rankings on Tuesday, but they are still ranked No. 8 in the United Soccer Coaches Central Region Top-10 Poll
• Bemidji was picked to finish second in the 2022 NSIC Preseason Soccer Coaches' Poll and received five first place votes, the Beavers are coming off their second NSIC Regular Season Championship in the last three seasons
• Bemidji State dropped their season opener at South Dakota State (3-0) and recorded a draw at Northern Michigan (3-3) before earning their first win of the season at Michigan Tech (1-0)
• Sara Wendt, a 2-time All-NSIC performer, leads the Beavers with a goal and an assist for three points on the season
• Alyssa Stumbaugh, a 2021 First Team All-NSIC goalkeeper, has started all three games for Bemidji and recorded one shutout while grabbing 19 saves for a 0.760 save percentage
• Bemidji State is 4-0-1 in their last five NSIC openers
• Jim Stone is in his 21^st season as the head coach at Bemidji State, he holds a career record of 220-127-36

Looking Back to 2021

• Northern State dropped two closely contested games to Bemidji State a year ago, losing the 2021 NSIC season opener to the Beavers 2-1 before falling for the second time in the NSIC Tournament First Round 2-0
• Bemidji State leads the all-time series 14-13-3, and have won the last six meetings

Minnesota Crookston Storylines

• Minnesota Crookston enters Friday's NSIC opener against MSU Moorhead with a record of 1-2
• The Golden Eagles opened the season with a 2-1 victory over Waldorf at home before dropping a pair of games on the road at Michigan Tech (1-0) and Northern Michigan (6-0)
• Crookston was picked to finish 16^th in the NSIC Preseason Soccer Coaches' Poll
• Abby Fettinger and Alyssa Pavlacic lead the team with one goal each, Morgan Laplante adds two assists to tie with Fettinger and Pavlacic for the team lead in points with two
• Kathryn Brainerd has started in two of UMC's matches this season, recording one win while grabbing 11 saves for a 0.846 save percentage
• Kyle Halfpop is in his fourth season as the head coach at Minnesota Crookston, leading the Golden Eagles to a record of 3-34
• Prior to UMC Halfpop was the head women's soccer coach at Iowa Wesleyan for one season, in his five years as a head coach he holds a career record of 3-49-1

Looking Back to 2021

• Northern State defeated Minnesota Crookston 4-0 in Aberdeen on September 19, 2021
• Northern leads the all-time series 18-3-3, and have won the last five meetings