THE OPENING KICK: It's good to be home. Finally.

The University of Minnesota Duluth will have its first home games this weekend after spending the better part of three weeks on the road to start the season. The 2018 home opener is Friday, Sept. 21 at 6:00 p.m. under the lights against No. 16 Minnesota State University Mankato. The Bulldogs will have a 25th anniversary celebration to honor the alumnae on Sunday, Sept. 23 in a contest against Concordia University-St. Paul. Both Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference engagements will be hosted at James S. Malosky Stadium.

SCOUTING REPORT ON MINNESOTA STATE MANKATO: The No. 16 Mavericks (4-1-0; 2-0-0 NSIC) dismantled Winona State and Upper Iowa last week. They out shot both teams combined 45-17, and have registered 10+ shots on goal in four of their five matches.  MSU Mankato is 4-0 at home and 0-1 on the road, losing to No. 1 Central Missouri. Molly Riley had three goals on the weekend to spark the Mavericks. Riley and Dakota Wendell lead MSU Mankato with three goals apiece. Wendell has a team -high seven points with an added assist. Riley is tied for second with Julia Zach, who is one of four players with multiple assists, for six points. Alea Rabune has played all 450:00 minutes in goal. Rabune has posted a pair of shutouts on 19 saves and given up four goals this season.

SCOUTING REPORT ON CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL: The Golden Bears (5-0-0; 2-0-0 NSIC) are off to their first 5-0 start in any season, except for the 2001 season when the team beat seven non-Division II teams. They won a pair of one-goal decisions last week over Upper Iowa and Winona State to get off to their first 2-0 NSIC start since 2006. Concordia-St. Paul had a pair of goals by Brooke Salo last weekend including the game winner against Winona State. Salo has three goals and seven points to lead the Golden Bears. Jena Berkland and Jordan Rowan-Stafford have two goals each and Katri Gifford and Leah Johnson lead the club in assists with two.

THE SERIES: The Bulldogs are 8-19-5 against Minnesota State. The Mavericks are one of only three NSIC teams to have a winning record over UMD. Friday night will be the 33rd meeting between the two squads after the Bulldogs loss 1-0 in overtime in the regular season and dropped the quarterfinal round of the NSIC Tournament in penalty kicks.
The Bulldogs, in 21 lifetime meetings, are 18-1-2 versus Concordia-St. Paul. Last season, UMD tied the Golden Bears for the second consecutive season.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD stacks up against Minnesota State and Concordia-St. Paul in the NSIC standings, their records, and the latest United Soccer Coaches Division II poll.
TEAM        NSIC            RECORD            POLL
UMD     1-2 (T-10th)          2-4-0                 NR
MSU     2-0 (T-3rd)            4-1-0                 16th
CSP      2-0 (T-3rd)            5-0-0                 NR

THE BROADCAST: All NSIC matches will be carried live through a video stream, with live stats, and is available for free at: portal.stretchinternet.com/umd/

LAST WEEK MATCHES: UMD split last weekend blanking Minnesota Crookston 3-0 on the road and dropping a close 2-1 decision at No. 14 Bemidji State. The Bulldogs out shot the Golden Eagles 26-2 as junior forward Logan Nash, freshman midfielder Julia Osborne, and freshman Hannah Caldwell all found the back of the net. The Beavers climbed out to an early 2-0 lead but UMD struck late with Haley Ford's tally and had its comeback rally fall short.

25 SEASONS OF SOCCER: On Sunday, UMD will pay tribute to its alumnae at halftime against Concordia-St. Paul In all, over 60 former players and staff are expected to return to James S. Malosky Stadium for the day's activities. UMD has been revered in the postseason over the last two and a half decades, with five NSIC regular season and postseason championships, three NCAA postseason appearances, one NCAA Super Regional appearance, and the host the 2013 NCAA Central and Super Regionals. In addition, three All-Americans, 55 All-Central Region honorees, 91 all-conference selections have been bestowed and one alumna into to the UMD Athletic Hall of Fame.

"KICKS FOR CAUSES"- SAFE HAVEN EDITION: The UMD soccer team has used their home matchups since its initiation in 2014 as a way to give back to the community by highlighting organizations and charities that student-athletes have chosen to represent. Senior Sisley Ng selected Safe Haven to be featured for Friday's game. 

AGAINST TOP 25 CLUBS: The Bulldogs are 7-23-5 against opponents ranked in the top 25 dating back to 2004. They are winless in their last 10 matches with their last win coming on Nov. 5, 2014 against No. 24 Augustana in the first round of the NSIC Tournament.

FIRST YEAR LUCK: The freshmen class has accounted for 45.8 percent of the production. Four freshmen (Julia Osborne, Hannah Caldwell, Haley Ford and Alli Jenkins) have scored four goals and three assists for 11 points.

REMEMBERING YOUR FIRST: A trio of Bulldogs have netted their first collegiate goals this season. Freshmen Julia Osborne and Hannah Caldwell and redshirt freshman Haley Ford have booted their first tallies in a Bulldog uniform in three separate matches. Osborne scored the game winner against Northern Michigan. Caldwell scored the third goal in a 3-0 win over Minnesota Crookston. Ford compiled her tally this past Sunday in the match versus Bemidji State.

BORNE TO BE WILD: Freshman Julia Osborne leads the Bulldogs with six points on a pair of goals and assists. The midfielder has come off the bench in all six games this season and had her best week to date posting a four-point weekend over Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State. Osborne is second in points among freshmen in the NSIC.

SECOND HALF DOGS: Five of the seven UMD's goals  this season have came in the second half of play. 

ARE YOU IN GOOD HANDS?: Senior goalkeeper Sisley Ng has climbed the ranks among the program's record book for keepers. Walked on days prior to her freshman campaign, Ng sits sixth in career saves (196), ninth in saves percentage (.790), seventh in shutouts (9.5), ninth in goals against average (1.24), and eighth in wins (15).

OH CAPTAINS, MY CAPTAINS: A trio of seniors, goalkeeper Sisley Ng, defender Erika Hjort and midfielder Laura Edgren  have been entrenched with the 'C' responsibilities for this fall. Ng is listed as the captain while Hjort and Edgren are the alternates.

NSIC COACHES PICK BULLDOGS SIXTH: UMD was picked to finish sixth in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference for the second consecutive year according to the NSIC coaches' poll. The Bulldogs were selected behind Minnesota State Mankato, Bemidji State, Augustana, Minot State, and Concordia-St. Paul.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: UMD has an impeccable 134-51-15 record playing inside the confines of James S. Malosky Stadium (good for a .708 winning percentage). Having played all 25 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. 

HOME OPENERS: The Bulldogs are 15-7-2 in home debuts. After blanking Wisconsin-Parkside 3-0 in the 2017 home opener, UMD has won three of the last four debuts at Malosky. 

NIFTY 250: Cane gathered historic UMD win number 250 at Wayne State. Cane is the 18th coach to hit the milestone at the Division II level all time. His 268 collegiate wins with the St. Scholastica and UMD clubs ranks him 13th among head coaches.

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs depart for Augustana University and Wayne State College next weekend for another round of NSIC contests.