The Fort Hays State Women's Soccer team is set to open up their 2023 season with a pair of home matches. The Tigers face Northwestern Oklahoma State in their season opener on Thursday (Aug. 31) at 7:30 p.m. before taking on Southwestern College on Saturday (Sep. 2) at 2 p.m.  
 
The Tigers managed an 11-3-7 overall record last season in head coach Tyson John's first year at the helm. Fort Hays State defended their home pitch last season with an undefeated record of 6-0-4, and finished conference play with a 5-1-5 record. A lot of the success came due to stout defensive play as the Tigers were one of the top defensive teams in the country, holding their opponents to just 15 goals all season and only 10 prior to the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers were able to reach the NCAA Division II Tournament for the third time in program history and first time since 2016.  
 
Fort Hays State returns seven of their nine All-MIAA selections from last year, led by first-team selection Reilly Madden (defender). The Tigers also welcome seven newcomers to the team this season. 
 
The Rangers of Northwestern Oklahoma State finished the 2022 season with a 7-5-7 overall record and 4-3-6 in GAC play. Northwestern outscored their opponents 28-21 throughout the season last year. The Rangers return some offensive production from a season ago in junior forward Tiara Campbell. Campbell was the second-leading scorer for NWOSU with five goals. The Tigers took last season's matchup by a score of 1-0 in Hays on September 5th. Fort Hays State will look to stay undefeated in the all-time series (3-0) against NWOSU on Thursday night.  
 
The Southwestern College Moundbuilders had a successful season in 2022, finishing with an 11-5-5 overall record, 7-1-4 in the KCAC. Southwestern went unbeaten on their home turf last year with a 7-0-2 record. After finishing the 2022 regular season third in the KCAC, the Moundbuilders came up just shy of a KCAC tournament title falling to Oklahoma Wesleyan in the championship match. Southwestern will already have three matches under their belts prior to facing the Tigers. Saturday afternoon will serve as the inaugural game in the all-time series between Fort Hays State and Southwestern College. 
 
Live stats and live video will be available for both contests. 
 
The Tigers will stay in Hays next weekend as well with matches on Friday (Sep. 8) and Sunday (Sep. 10).