Fall 2022 Preview: NSIC (MN DII)

Welcome back to NSIC in MN, where we cover the amazing division 2 talent at the Northern Sun Conference schools of Minnesota. Expect a biweekly roundup with featured players and teams making moves, along with interviews with players and coaches!  Thanks to the NSIC Conference and member Teams who provide great photos, stats and streaming so we can create our coverage!

Author: Mark Privratsky

Let's take you back to December of 2021. The D2 National Tournament has just wrapped and the NSIC had three tournament wins to hang their hats on. Bemidji State made their furthest run in history into the Round of 16, while perennial Tourney goers Mankato State had won a first round game before bowing out in the round of 32. The top end strength of the NSIC has historically come from those two Minnesota schools, but this is one of the most competitive conferences in D2, so anything can happen on a given day. 2022 will look similar as the two Minnesota powers return plenty of talent, and look to hold off Augustana, Minot, Concordia-St Paul and St Cloud and others.

The NSIC Coaches Preaseason poll gives Mankato the edge even with BSU's Tourney run. The National Rankings put BSU ahead at 9 and Mankato at 19. What we have is two teams who definitely believe they will win the NSIC. Concordia (4th) and St Cloud (7th) are the next tier of the MN teams, with strong seasons to build on from last year. The lower end of the NSIC has a lot of parity, so Winona (9th), UMD(11th) and Southwest MN State(13th) will look to scrap above that. MSU Moorhead (15th) and Crookston (16th) have a tough go competing with better funded programs at the top of the league but they're still capable of a sneak result. 

​#9 Bemidji State

Think Bemidji feels confident about their chances this year? They're coming off the deepest Tournament run in history, they return two 5th year seniors (Sara Wendt and Allyson Smith) who combined for 25 goals and 11 assists last year, and they also feature All American Defender Megan Dahl who by the way had 5 assists last year. Dahl was NSIC Defender of the Year in '21 and picked again for the award in '22. If not for an injury, she also would have been on the historic MN Aurora FC squad with her former BSU teammate Mariah Nguyen (who has since transferred to St Thomas). Backstopping the Beavers is Alyssa Stumbaugh, who starred for MN Aurora rival Green Bay Glory in the USL W League this summer. 

Games to Watch
BSU at South Dakota State
August 28, 1pm
Last year BSU kicked of the year beating a different D1 team, UND 2-0 in Grand Forks. 
*Stream from SDSU website! 

BSU vs Mankato
BSU HOMECOMING
Sept 16, 3pm
WOODS vs PRAIRIE. Last year in Mankato this game ended as a 2OT tie at 2-2
*Stream from BSU website! 

#19 MSU Mankato

The national coaches may have given Bemidji the edge with their national ranking, but here locally the NSIC coaches have plenty of memories (nightmares?) of Mankato taking wins off of them, so Mankato enters the season as the technical favorite, and why not? First we remind you that the core of this team plays all summer together with Mankato United in the WPSL. Second, the Mavericks bring back almost all of their offense: Allie Williams (5g 8a), Mallie Mathis (6g 5a), Brynn Desens (5g 4a), Nadia Lowery (6g 2a) and many more. Lastly, we didn't forget that the Mavericks have a 5th year from scorer Jenny Vetter, who had 19 goals last year and could claim the all time NSIC crown of 44 goals if she scores 15 goals this year (she has 29 career goals). Equal Time followers would note that Bemidji State Legend Rachel Norton sits at 40 goals, but is the all time points leader with 104 because she had 24(!) assists as well. 

Games to Watch
​#19 MSU Mankato at #1 Grand Valley State
Sept 4, Noon
The Mavericks get a shot at 21 National Champions Grand Valley State
*Stream via MSU Mankato website!

#19 MSU Mankato vs Augustana
Sept 11, 1pm
Perennial contenders from South Dakota visit Mankato in an early tone setter for the NSIC
*Stream via MSU Mankato website!

Concordia-St Paul

2019 feels like a long time ago thanks to the time bubble we have all experienced, but the Concordia St Paul Golden Bears would like to remind you that they were NSIC Champions just 3 years (just 2 seasons) ago. One of the most stable programs in the conference, CSP has had four consecutive winning seasons, an impressive feat in a deep conference. Their top scorer, Katie Anderson returns after 7 goals in her sophmore campaign. Sophie Pawlyshyn returns after 4 goals and 6 assists last year. Keepers Ashlyn Waldon and Jessi Jordan shared backstop duties last year and both come back, along with 11 newcomers! If the Golden Bears can get contributions from the reinforcements, they will again challenge for the top end of the NSIC

Games to Watch
CSP vs Augustana
Sept 9, 7pm
Concordia opens NSIC play with a tough home date with the Vikings. As the only Twin Cities based team, us city kids take the big teams visiting when we can!
*Stream via CSP website!

CSP at St Cloud State
Oct 9, 1pm
This one will have playoff implications. Both Concordia and St Cloud will go into the season shooting for the post season and this game could determine where those cards fall
*Stream via St Cloud State website!

St Cloud State

St Cloud State is coming off of a NSIC tournament birth, in a season where you'd have to say they were a bit unlucky with 5 1 goal losses and a few tough ties. They chased the playoffs and won 4 games out of 5 to clinch that spot. Historically, they haven't seen the bottom half of the NSIC in years and are lead by a veteran coaches Gretta Arvesona and her assistant Jade Smith, an all female coaching team that is unfortunately all too rare in soccer! Among those returning for the Huskies is Karlie Valdez, who's coming off an All Conference season in midfield, and Jenna Dominguez who we interviewed last year (see below)

.@markprivratsky & @rachaellouise58 are LIVE with Jocelin Martinez of @SCSUHUSKIES_SOC. Show presented by @pentzhomes! https://t.co/WQbiGZGoXw

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) September 28, 2021

Games to Watch
St Cloud State vs MSU Mankato
Oct 7, 6pm
The Huskies have a brutal stretch in the middle of the year where they play Mankato, CSP and Augustana in a row, starting with the Mankato game. If they can make it through these games in good form their later slate is a lot easier
*Stream via St Cloud St Website!

​St Cloud State at Minot State
Sept 11, Noon
It's always tough to get a result when you drive up the North Dakota prairie to Minot
*Stream via St Cloud St Website!

​Winona State

Winona State was picked by the NSIC coaches to finish 9th in the preseason poll this year. While we pay a lot of attention to the handful of programs who regularly compete for the title, the true fight for a team is the middle of this conference. The teams that are generally in 7th-14th are liable to create totally unpredictable results and if you lose a bounce or a ref makes a bad call, you can start a spiral quickly. Last year Winona had 9 games come down to a 1 goal difference, and they'll hope this year fortune shines on them a bit more. Players to watch from the NSIC poll include Senior Riley Harmon and Bailey Deininger, both having 33 career matches under their belts. 

Games to Watch
Winona St at SW MN St
Sept 11, 1pm

Winona St at St Cloud St
Sept 16, 6pm

Winona at UMD
Sept 18, 1pm
This 3 game away stretch to start the season will say a lot about where Winona ends up this year. All the games are winnable and the schedule immediately turns sour after this, hosting Minot, Mary, CSP and Mankato in 4 tough home games. 

Minnesota-Duluth

Like Winona, UMD faces the slog of fighting through the middle of the conference, picked to finish 11th in this years preseason poll. The Bulldogs finished with 1 goal losses to Mary, Upper Iowa, SW MN State, Bemidji and St Cloud last year, so theres room for optimism from the squad if they can find an edge this year. Even with tough results, this is a team that also beat multiple NSIC Tournament teams including Concordia, so in this league you never know. The preseason poll players to watch were Maddie Felton and Sarah Stange, who both tallied over 1000 minutes last year

Games to Watch
UMD at Southwest MN State
Sept 25, tbd
If UMD hopes to make the top 8 for the NSIC Tourney, winning games like this will get them there. 
*Stream via UMD website!

UMD vs St Cloud State
Oct 27, 6pm
The Bulldogs close the regular season against St Cloud in the Dog Derby. This could be a game that they need to clinch a playoff birth, or spoil St Cloud's
*Stream via UMD website!

​Southwest MN State

The Mustangs of Marshall share some sentiment with UMD, having scrapped through a tough year with so many close losses. After winning their opener against Blackhills State, they suffered tough 1 goal losses to Missouri Western St, Upper Iowa, Winona, Minot, and Mary all in a row. Southwest rebounded with a few wins over some of the bottom teams, but ultimately they ended up in 13th. This young team will hope to get a boost from 11 newcomers, while an offensive core returns. Abbey Hoisington and Alex Lotts both had 4 goals last year, while Lotts threw in 4 assists as well. Defender Katie Oatman returns to lead a backline she played 1,419 minutes in last year. 

Games to Watch
Southwest MN State vs Upper Iowa
Sept 9, 3pm
The NSIC opener will be huge for the Mustangs, who have a winnable game against a team that beat them 1-0 last year. Maybe they can set the tone for a bounce-back year. 

Southwest MN State vs UMD
Sept 25, 1pm
Two squads who typically fight to make the edge of the NSIC playoffs will both need points if they want a postseason birth

​MSU Moorhead

The Dragons are a team that has to fight for everything they get in the NSIC. Lead by former Crookston Hall of Famer Christie Kopietz (see interview below!), Moorhead is one of the few programs with an all female staff as well. Michelle Martinez, Tiana Khamvongsa, Karli Kopietz and Sierra Renham round out the team. In this conference with a top heavy trend to it, 13th finishing Moorhead still had 1-0 losses to Mankato and Minot, as well as Sioux Falls and UMD. Look for Moorhead to win more than the 1 game they did last year. Returners to note include Midfielder Callyn Johnson who suffered a season ending injury early last year, and Defender Grace Heying.

LIVE with @christiemikyla, Head Coach at @MSUM_Soccer. Presented by @pentzhomes https://t.co/kZ64cCJvWa

— Equal Time Soccer (@EqualTimeSoccer) April 7, 2022

Games to Watch
MSU Moorhead at Crookston
Sept 9, 4pm
Two squads that fight to avoid the bottom of the NSIC start their conference slate against each other. Is this the Corn Cup or would SW MN St and Winona need to be included?

MSU Moorhead at St Leo
Sept 2, 7pm
The Dragons kick off their season in Florida! After a couple preseason games with Concordia and St Scholastica, they head to St Leo, Florida and then on to Tampa

​University of MN - Crookston

As a 6 credit alumni of UM-Crookston, I have a soft spot for the Golden Eagles. Not that long ago, when aforementioned Moorhead coach Christie Kopietz was scoring goals for Crookston, they made the NSIC Tournament. The road is a tougher one now in the NSIC, and nothing comes easy for the Golden Eagles. This is a young squad, with 7 newcomers joining a team that only graduated one senior. Among the newcomers are two college transfers that can hopefully add to last year's core. Standout defender Jada VanOverbeke leads the back line after having an All NSIC season last year (the first by a Crookston player since 2016). Keep an eye on incoming transfer Jenna Custer from D1 Grand Canyon University. Kopietz will hope she found a diamond in the rough to boost her attack. 

Games to Watch
Crookston at Northern Michigan 
Sept 4, 11 am
After they open against Waldorf, Crookston heads to the U.P. for a pair of games. Of note, of course, is Northern Michigans wooden sports dome, the biggest wooden dome in the world! As far as we know they do not play soccer in it

Crookston vs Winona State
Oct 9, 1pm
Alumni Weekend! Aside from Moorhead, Winona was the closest to Crookston in the 2021 standings and represents a good chance for points at home
*Stream via UM-Crookston website