SEWARD, Neb. – It’s just about time to kick things off for real. The Concordia University women’s soccer team will open up the 2019 season by hosting Missouri Valley College on Saturday. Kickoff from Bulldog Stadium is set for 1 p.m. CT. It will mark Chris Luther’s first game as head coach of the Bulldogs.
Game Info
Concordia vs. Missouri Valley
Seward, Neb. | Bulldog Stadium | 1 p.m. CT
Stream: Concordia Sports Network
Concordia has a well-established program that expects to compete near the top of the league standings. It was picked third in the GPAC preseason coaches’ poll. The program enters the season with an active streak of five-straight GPAC tournament championship game appearances. During that run, the Bulldogs have won at least 13 games in each season. All of those campaigns were presided over by Greg Henson, now the head coach at Ferris State University.
The 2019 edition also moves on without one of the program’s all-time greats in Maria Deeter. Luther feels good about what is in place up the middle of the field. That group includes 2017 GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley and returning first team all-conference performer Tori Cera, who is capable of playing all over the field. Concordia must replace the offensive production it lost with the graduation of Deeter and Lauren Martin and settle on the right players on the outsides. Overall, this remains a talented roster.
Missouri Valley, which went 11-6-2 in 2018, will provide a significant challenge in the season opener. The Vikings are off to a 1-0 start after clipping Jamestown, 2-1, on Tuesday. In that contest, Drew Hawkins’ squad came back from a 1-0 deficit with a pair of goals in the final eight minutes of play. Missouri Valley’s lone game against a GPAC foe last season resulted in a 2-0 loss to Midland. The Vikings are replacing firepower of their own having lost two players that accounted for 22 of the team’s 36 goals last season.
Next week the Bulldogs will be headed to Arkansas for a pair of matchups (Aug. 29, 31) in Siloam Springs against top 25 foes: No. 13 John Brown University (Ark.) and No. 19 University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.