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All notes courtesy of SMSU athletics communications.
THIS WEEK
The Southwest Minnesota State University women’s soccer team (2-8-3, 2-6-2 NSIC) continues Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play this weekend with a pair of road matches in North Dakota.
The Mustangs travel to Bismarck on Friday, Oct. 16, to face UMary at 3 p.m. before heading to Minot on Sunday, Oct. 18, for a 1 p.m. match against Minot State.
LAST WEEK’S RESULTS
The Mustangs went 1-1 on the road last weekend, defeating Wayne State 1-0 on Friday before falling 7-0 to Augustana on Sunday.
SMSU earned its second victory of the season against Wayne State, with the Wildcats scoring an own goal in the first half. Freshman goalkeeper Madelyn Cory recorded seven saves to earn her second win and third shutout of the season.
The Mustangs then faced Augustana in Sioux Falls, with the Vikings earning a 7-0 victory. Cory recorded 16 saves in the match.
2026 OUTLOOK
SMSU head coach Clay Glasgow, entering his fifth season, returns 13 letter winners from 2025 and features seven seniors, four juniors, three sophomores and five freshmen.
SMSU senior defenders Illjana Arbaugh and Abigail Schmidt have each scored once this season.
Junior forward Jada Backes leads the Mustangs offensively with two goals and two assists. Backes scored twice in SMSU’s 2-0 victory over MSU Moorhead on Sept. 20 and has contributed to four of the team’s seven goals.
Senior forward Karla Paredes-Nino has also scored twice this season, including both goals in SMSU’s 2-2 draw against Jamestown on Oct. 4.
The Mustangs’ backline of Arbaugh, Sophia Sonnek, Janae Kayser and Jayna Benson has provided veteran leadership throughout the season. Kayser has started all 13 matches, while Sonnek, Arbaugh, and Benson have all started at least 10 matches.
Freshman goalkeeper Madelyn Cory has started eight matches and recorded 57 saves, keeping three clean sheets along the way. Sophomore goalkeeper Kennady Krebs has made 32 saves in six appearances.
HEAD COACH CLAY GLASGOW
Clay Glasgow is in his fifth season as head coach and has a record of 16-55-13 overall, including 15-44-9 in NSIC play. He was hired as the sixth head coach in program history on Feb. 25, 2022.
Glasgow came to SMSU after spending eight seasons (2014-21) as head women’s soccer coach at Dakota Wesleyan University (S.D.), recording a mark of 49-86-5.
During his last two seasons at DWU, the Tigers amassed back-to-back winning seasons and qualified for the Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament both seasons.
SERIES HISTORY -- UMARY
The Mustangs will face UMary for the 24th time in program history on Friday, with the Marauders holding an 18-4-1 advantage in the all-time series.
SMSU’s last victory over UMary came in 2016. The Mustangs lost the last meeting to the Marauders 4-0 in 2025.
Coach Glasgow holds a record of 0-3-1 against UMary as SMSU head coach.
SCOUTING UMARY
UMary enters the weekend with an 8-2-3 overall record and a 7-1-2 mark in NSIC play. The Marauders most recently defeated Northern State 1-0 on Oct. 11, scoring the game-winning goal with 24 seconds remaining.
The Marauders were picked sixth in the 2026 NSIC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. Sophomore midfielder Dina Polanco and senior defender Chloe Brand were named UMary’s Players to Watch.
Polanco was named the 2025 NSIC Newcomer of the Year and earned All-NSIC First Team and D2CCA All-Central Region First Team honors. She finished her freshman season with nine goals and three assists, and currently has 11 goals this season.
Brand earned All-NSIC Second Team honors in 2025 after recording three goals and two assists. She also helped anchor a defense that recorded eight shutouts last season. Brand scored the winning goal against Northern State last Sunday.
Head coach Sarah Cook is in her 15th season leading the Marauders.
SERIES HISTORY -- MINOT STATE
The Mustangs will face Minot State for the 16th time in program history on Sunday, with the Beavers holding a 12-3 advantage in the all-time series.
Minot State won the most recent meeting, earning a 4-0 victory in Marshall on Oct. 24, 2025.
SMSU’s last victory over the Beavers came in 2023, when the Mustangs earned a 2-0 win in Minot.
Glasgow has a record of 1-3-0 against MSU as Mustangs head coach.
SCOUTING MINOT STATE
Minot State enters the weekend following a pair of matches last weekend, falling 2-0 to Northern State on Friday before playing to a 1-1 draw against Jamestown on Sunday.
The Beavers were picked eighth in the 2026 NSIC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. Linnea Svenzen and Brittney Egbert were chosen as ‘Players to Watch’.
Iliana Rivera is the leading goalscorer for the Beavers, scoring twice in September against Winona State and Bemidji State.
Adam Daley is in his first season as Minot State head coach.
SMSU PICKED 13TH IN NSIC PRESEASON POLL
SMSU was selected 13th in the 16-team NSIC Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
NSIC regular season and tournament champion Minnesota State was selected as the favorite to win the conference again, receiving 13 first-place votes and 223 points.
Concordia-St. Paul finished second with 204 points and three first-place votes, followed by Bemidji State with 193 points, Augustana with 174 points and St. Cloud State with 164 points.
SMSU’s 13th-place selection came with 46 points.
Junior forward Jada Backes and senior defender Sophia Sonnek were both named Players to Watch in the preseason poll.
MUSTANG HISTORY
SMSU is in its 31st season of soccer in 2026 and 30th season of competition (2020 was canceled).
The Mustangs have compiled an all-time record of 170-333-41, including 124-199-28 in NSIC games.
SMSU has made 14 NSIC tournaments and played in the region championship of the NCAA Tournament in 2013.
SMSU has recorded four winning seasons in program history, with the last coming in 2019.