THE OPENING KICK: After gathering four points in the opening week of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference play, the University of Minnesota Duluth looks to position itself in the upper echelon of the league with six more points up for grab this weekend. Minnesota State University-Moorhead is the first of those clashes, which happens Friday at 3:00 p.m. in Moorhead, Minn. The Bulldogs return home to take on Northern State University Sunday.

SCOUTING REPORT ON MSU-MOORHEAD: The Dragons are one of the five teams who also have four points with UMD. MSUM has four players who have connected for goals. Annika Greaney leads the offensive unit in shots on target but hasn't registered a point. Jenai DeNardo is the leading point getter with three points (1-1=3).
The Dragons have had three goalies start in net with Corina Edgington the only keeper to start multiple games. Combined, MSUM has 30 saves, good for a .882 saves percentage, third best in the league.

SCOUTING REPORT ON NORTHERN STATE: The Wolves will enter this weekend two points up on the Bulldogs and will play St. Cloud State before venturing to Malosky Stadium. Similar to the Dragons, NSU has six players each score only one goal. 
Alison Byrd, Shianne Rosselli and Stepany Estrada all cap the Wolves with three points. Bryd has registered the most shots. Justine Charles is the keeper allowing just a goal up a game. 

THE SERIES: The matchup between the Bulldogs and the Dragons will be the 23rd time the teams have met. The Bulldogs are 18-3-1 lifetime going 8-1-1 since 2008. During that time frame, UMD has a 22-4 goal differential.
The matchup between the Bulldogs and the Wolves will be the 18th meeting between the two squads. UMD is 15-2-1 in those matches and has gone 8-1 in the last nine games including a 1-0 shutout last year.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD stacks up against MSU and CSP in the latest United Soccer Coaches Division II poll and how they were matched up in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Central Region poll.
TEAM    COACHES    REGION
UMD         NR                10th
MSUM       NR                NR
NSU          NR                NR

THE BROADCAST: The match versus MSU-Moorhead on Friday will be carried live through a video stream, in addition to live stats, and are available for free at:
portal.stretchinternet.com/msum
The match versus Northern State Sunday will be carried live through a video stream, in addition to live stats, with the play-by-play call provided by the iFan Sports Network and are available for free at:
portal.stretchinternet.com/umd

LAST TIME OUT: UMD gained one point during the home double dip.
The Bulldogs fell in the 94th minute to No. 15 Minnesota State University, Mankato 1-0 in the first overtime. The Mavericks outshot UMD 32-10 but only mustered 12 shots on goal as the Bulldogs blocked a season-high eight shots. Junior goalkeeper Sisley Ng corralled a career-matching 10 saves in only defeat of the year for Ng and her fellow club.
Concordia University, St. Paul put UMD in a 2-0 hole early last Sunday but the Bulldogs fought back in the second half to tie the game and take a draw. Sophomore midfielder Emily Hinz had a career day on the Malosky Stadium pitch. Hinz lasered a clear ball from the box to the upper left corner in the 66th minute. Eleven minutes later, the St. Louis Park, Minn., native fed a ball into the box and found junior defender Lizzy Fontes, who redirected it with her head into the net to knot the match up at two.  

GOLDEN GIRLS: Senior forward Skye Finley and junior forward Natalie St. Martin each received NSIC honors for offensive player of the week accolades for the first two weeks of the season. Before St. Martin claimed the weekly conference award, defender Megan Helberg ('14) was the last Bulldog member to be selected player of the week honors on Nov. 3, 2014.
Player of the Week Honors
Sept. 5- Natalie St. Martin Offense PoW
Sept. 11- Skye Finley Offense PoW

Finley snagged the honor for leading UMD to a pair of victories over Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech. She chipped in both game-winners off beautifully placed corner kicks.
St. Martin, the product of Mahtomedi H.S., slammed home the game winner then proceeded to tally assists on the other two markers of a 3-0 victory of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. That four-point performance already matched her entire output of 2016.

TOP DOGS: Forwards Skye Finley and Natalie St. Martin have leaped near the top of the NSIC scoring charts and rank among the best in the league. The duo share the third spot in the conference for points (7) and are tied for fifth in points per game (1.17).

YOU'LL ALWAYS REMEMBER YOUR FIRST: Junior Madison Carey, sophomore Mikayla Iaquinto and sophomore Emily Hinz each registered their first points of their careers this season. Carey assisted on UMD's third goal against the Rangers on Aug. 31. Iaquinto posted her assist on Nash's tally off the crossbar versus the St. Cloud State on Sept. 10. Hinz had a goal and an assist against Concordia-St. Paul on Sept. 17.

YOU SHALL NOT PASS: The Bulldog defense has been ruthless to opposing offenses to start the season. UMD allowed its first goal of the season against Michigan Tech in the 63rd minute. That ended the Bulldogs' 242:25 minute streak without allowing a goal. During that stretch, the backline has allowed 17 shots (5.3 shots/game) total and a mere seven shots on goal (2.3 SOG/game).

BRICK HOUSE: UMD has allowed four goals in six games played (.638 GAA) which marks them as the 44th best defense in the country in goals allowed per game. That figure is only topped by NSIC foes Bemidji State University and Minnesota State.

NOT ON HER WATCH: Junior goalkeeper Sisley Ng recorded two of the three Bulldog shutouts thus far.   Ng's .494 goals against average slots her 32nd in the nation and her .889 saves percentage wedges herself up to 29th in the land.

FRONT RUNNERS: UMD lasted 459:19 minutes into the season before trailing in regulation. It either led or tied its opponents for over six games until Concordia-St. Paul booted the opening marker at 9:19.

GOOOOOOOAL!: Skye Finley leads the team with three goals, which ranks her third in the NSIC.  The co-captain trails only Rachael Norton (BSU) and Caylin Cathey (Mary) in the distinction of top goal scorer. She is also tied for second in game-winning tallies.

WHAT A FEED: Natalie St. Martin does more than just score goals. The right-footer has been included on the second most scoring plays in the NSIC. Her three assists occupy the No. 2 slot in the conference and 35th in all of Divison II.

OH CAPTAINS, MY CAPTAINS: A pair of forward seniors, Hailey Hoff and Skye Finley, have been entrenched with the 'C' responsibilities for this fall. Finley served that responsibility last season. The last time UMD had at least two captains was in 2014 when Hannah Keil and Jennifer Smith led the helm. 

BEHIND THE CRYSTAL BALL: In the annual NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll, the Bulldogs were tabbed with a sixth place finish. The top distinction went to Minnesota State University-Mankato, which garnered 11 first-place votes and 217 points overall. Augustana University was second with 210 points (five first-place votes) followed by Bemidji State University (188), Minot State University (187), St. Cloud State University (165) then UMD.

THE CANE FILES: Greg Cane is one of the few coaches who can claim to have literally build his or her squad from the ground up. Cane officially became the first head soccer coach in Bulldog history in 1994.

The Bulldogs joined the upstart NSIC in 1996 and have claimed the league crown five times (1997, 1998, 2001-03) as well as five conference tournament titles (1997, 1998, 2001, 2003, and 2009) in 17 seasons of NSIC competition Cane has twice led UMD to unblemished conference marks (1997 and 2003) and both times been named the NSIC Coach of the Year in those seasons.
Cane and the Bulldogs claimed its first-ever national ranking in 1999. One year later, UMD set a team record with 17 wins and would be ranked as high as eighth nationally en route to capturing the program's first NCAA Tournament berth. The team matched that win total in 2013 and made its biggest splash in the postseason, hosting the NCAA II Central Region Tournament where they reached the NCAA II Quarterfinals  before succumbing to eventual champion Grand Valley State University. UMD would finish seventh in the final National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.
The Bulldogs have been a model of consistency under the guidance of Cane in the upper Midwest. His keen eye for talent and development has harvested 27 different NSCAA/Daktronics All-Central Region players including three All-Americans in Clare Dahmen and Hannah Bengston in 2009 and Maria Leider the following season. Additionally, Cane has manufactured a trio of NSIC Offensive Players of the Year, a pair of NSIC Defensive Players of the Year and a NSIC Newcomer of the Year (Sheridan Reiners) in 2014.
In his nine years with the Saints, Cane rolled up a 106-53-12 mark while winning two National Small Colleges Athletic Association National Championships and five NAIA District 12 titles. Cane later played an integral role in establishing the St. Scholastica women's soccer program in 1990. In September 2013, Cane was inducted into the St. Scholastica Athletic Hall of Fame.

2016 ACCOLADES: Three returning Bulldogs earned All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference citations for their contributions a season ago. Finley was the only third-team choice. Junior defenders Lizzy Fontes and Hjort were pegged honorable mention selections. Each backliner netted their first career goals. 

THE 250 WATCH: Cane needs five more victories to become a member of the 250-win club at UMD. Cane will be on pace to become the 13th coach in any sport to accumulate at least 250 wins at the university. Cane clinched milestone win number 200 on Oct. 20, 2012 versus Northern State. Starting the 2017 campaign, his 256 victories at the collegiate level ranks him 13th all-time among NCAA II coaches and his .579 career winning percentage ranks him 11th among coaches with 20-plus years of experience.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: UMD has an impeccable 127-51-12 record playing inside the confines of Malosky Stadium (good for a .702 winning percentage). Having played all 24 seasons inside the 4,500-seat venue, the Bulldogs have had only two losing seasons and have capped off three perfect home records, the latest coming in 2009.

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs will renew their fiercest rivalry at Winona State Friday night at 7:00 p.m. The Warriors (2-3-1, 1-1-1 NSIC) battle Wayne State College and Augustana University this weekend.

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