What Lies Ahead: Minnesota State (7-1-1, 5-0-0 NSIC) hosts the University of Sioux Falls (4-3-0) Tuesday at 3 p.m. On Saturday, the Mavericks host Wayne State College (3-5-2, 0-4-1 NSIC)  at 1 p.m. The MSU-WSC game will be a Breast Cancer Awareness game as the Mavericks will wear their pink uniforms. Augustana will return to Mankato and face the Mavericks Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be played the Pitch at Gage Towers on the campus of Minnesota State University.

Recapping the Past Weekend: Minnesota State beat  Southwest Minnesota State 4-0 in a Sunday matinee in Marshall, Minn. The Mavericks rattled 24 shots on goal and didn’t allow any shots from the Mustangs.
     After a scoreless first half, MSU junior forward Brittany Henry scored her fifth game-winning goal when she broke the 0-0 tie in the third minute of the second half.  The game-winner places Henry tied for first in the nation in game-winning goals. Sophomore’s Courtney Vallarelli and Tori Meinhardt assisted the Henry game-winner.
     Minnesota State Brianne West scored her third goal of the season in the 61st minute to put the Mavericks up two goals. Junior forward Nicole Dooher tallied the assist.
     MSU scored on its second penalty kick of the season when Meinhardt put the ball in the lower right corner of the goal. Fellow sophomore Courtney Vallarelli scored her third goal of the season with Dooher marking her second assist of the game on the final goal of the game.

Scoutin' USF:  The Cougars (4-3-0) have outscored opponents 14-8 in its seven games this season and average 12.4 shots a game. USF beat SMSU 2-0 last week as the Mavericks beat SMSU 4-0 Sunday. The Cougars are 2-1 on the road this season while 71 percent (10) of their goals have been scored in the second half. USF has 13 players the grew up in the city of Sioux Falls on its roster. This will be the first time the Mavericks and Cougars have met on the soccer field.
    Freshman Desiree Paramenter has five goals and two assists as she leads the team on offense. Senior Tasia Murray has played in four games and has three goals. Sophomore goalkeeper Samantha Maybon owns a 1.12 goals against average and a .833 save percentage. The Cougars are coached by Mekonnon Afa.

Scoutin' Wayne State: The Wildcats (3-5-2, 0-4-1 NSIC) have been outscored 14-8 in its ten games this season. Wayne State averages 6.1 shots on goal per game, allowing an average of 5.1 shots on goal per game. The Wildcats have scored five of their eight goals in the first half. WSC’s only NSIC point this season came on a 1-1 tie with Upper Iowa as that is the only goal its scored in its five NSIC games. The Wildcats are a young team with 17 of the 22 players being underclassmen.
    Sophomore Alexa Romek has scored two goals this season in her eight games played. Freshman Mallory Hoyt has started all ten games and has rattled six shots on goal. Freshman Jessica Stringer has started eight games and owns a 1.07 goals against and a .769 save percentage. Wayne State is coached by Molly Grisham.

MSU/WSC History: The Mavericks own a perfect 6-0 record against the Wildcats. MSU has outscored Wayne State 29-0 in the six games. MSU junior forward Brittany Henry scored two goals in the meeting last season at Wayne State.

Scoutin' the Vikings: Augustana (5-5, 2-3 NSIC) and MSU met earlier this season as the Mavericks pulled out a 4-1 victory. The Vikings have scored 13 goals this season on 80 total shots on goal. Augustana is currently on a two-game skid from losses to Winona State and Upper Iowa last weekend. Brandon Barkus is the head coach of Augustana.         Sophomore midfielder Mackenzie Trom owns four goals and one assist this season, including two game-winners. Senior midfielder Stacey Dally has started nine games this season, scoring two goals and marking two assists. Junior keeper Amanda Wagner has a 1.37 goals against average and a .800 save percentage.

MSU/Augustana History: The Mavericks own the series 13-2 in the 15 contests between the two schools.  Minnesota State has won the last three games and has outscored Augustana 62-8 in the 15 meetings. Eight of the 13 wins for MSU have been shutout wins.

The Henry Factor: Junior forward Brittany Henry is currently tied for first in the nation with three other players for game-winning goals with five this season.
 
The Weatherman Says: According to weather.com, Mankato, Minn., is going to be 82 and sunny on Tuesday at the Pitch at Gage Towers. Saturday is scheduled for 76 degrees and a chance a rain, while Sunday is predicted 69 degrees with showers expected.

A Look at Shots and Ole’s: The Mavericks have 106 shots in the first half, compared to 97 shots in the second half. Even though they average less shots in the second half the have scored 17 goals (63%) in the final 45 minutes.
 
Against the Ranked Opponents: The Mavericks tied Grand Valley State (9/4) 1-1 as GVSU was ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time. MSU beat Regis University (9/11) 3-2 as Regis was ranked No. 25 at the time. The Mavericks only loss this season came against Metro State, who was unranked at the time but currently sits No. 13 in the nation right now.

Program History: The 2011 season marks the 17th year of women’s soccer as a varsity sport at Minnesota State. The Mavericks defeated Winona State in the 2008 NSIC Championship game, earning them the title of conference champions. The Mavericks currently hold a 196-102-18 (.648) all-time record and captured NCC regular-season crowns in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2007.  MSU has made a post-season appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The Coaches Duo: The 2011 season marks the fourth season coaches Peter McGahey and Gretta Arvesen have been on the sidelines together.  The two own a four year record of 47-18-6. Joining the two coaches is former Maverick goalkeeper Sheila Reynolds, who was a volunteer coach last season.

For the full version of this week's notes, click HERE.