Minnesota Crookston closes its October home schedule with two awareness-themed matches: Augustana visits Friday for the Green Bandana mental health event, followed by a cancer-awareness match Saturday against No. 2 Wayne State. The Golden Eagles face a steep challenge: they have never beaten Augustana in NSIC play and have only two wins in 39 meetings with Wayne State.

By the Numbers
  • Augustana leads the all-time series 27-0.
  • Wayne State leads the series 37-2 and enters 22-1 overall, 13-0 in the NSIC.
  • Minnesota Crookston senior Madison Carsten reached 1,000 career digs, becoming the sixth player in program history to hit the mark.
  • Freshman Brooklyn Gysbers has 78 kills and is the only Golden Eagle with more than 100 attacks hitting above .200.
Yes, But

The matchups favor the visitors: Augustana is coming off two wins, while Wayne State is ranked No. 2 and undefeated in conference play. Minnesota Crookston will look to make both opponents work for every point with its defensive grit and build on promising contributions from players such as Gysbers and Lexi Scharold.

State of Play
  • Friday’s match against Augustana starts at 6 p.m. CT; Saturday’s match against Wayne State starts at 2 p.m. CT. Both are at Lysaker Gymnasium in Crookston.
  • Friday features a Green Bandana event supporting mental health awareness; Saturday’s match supports cancer awareness.
  • After this weekend, Minnesota Crookston shifts to three matches next week against NSIC opponents closer to home.
What's Next

The Golden Eagles will try to end their winless NSIC run against Augustana and test themselves against one of Division II’s top teams before moving on to next week’s conference matches.

Bottom Line

These are daunting matchups, but the weekend offers Minnesota Crookston a chance to compete against elite opposition while bringing its community together around mental health and cancer awareness.