ERIE, Pa. -- The Augustana Vikings men's water polo team will be back in action beginning Friday, October 6 when they head to Pennsylvania for one non-conference contest and three MPSF matchups.

Augustana currently sports a 5-5 overall record, recently coming off a 2-3 trip to the state of California in which they faced four nationally-ranked teams. The Vikings picked up two true road contests during their stay, which included a one-point win at No. 7 Occidental. The Vikings then wrapped up their venture west with a 15-6 victory over Whittier last Sunday. Ian Palmroos led all players with four goals on the afternoon, followed by three from both Mark Addison and Oskar Bannister. Declan Hutton earned the win in net after saving 16 shots.

The Vikings recently learned that one of their upcoming scheduled games vs. Wheaton (Mass.) has been canceled due to forfeit and has been credited a towards Augustana's total, giving them five wins on the year. 

On Friday, Augie will begin with a non-conference game on the road against the Mercyhust Lakers, their second encounter this season. Mercyhurst enters the weekend with a 1-11 overall record and is currently enduring a seven-game losing skid. The Lakers lost to Harvard in their most recent outing by a score of 22-2. Augustana won the earlier-season matchup between the two programs back at the Bruno Classic in Norton, Mass., winning by a final score of 22-7. Bannister led the balanced Vikings' attack with four goals in the victory. 

The Vikings have won both of the previous meetings between the two teams. Start time is scheduled for 5 p.m. CDT.

On Saturday, Augie will get their first look at conference foes, beginning with the Washington & Jefferson Presidents at 8 a.m. CDT. The Presidents currently sit at 1-8 on the season and are in the midst of a seven-game losing streak. The team was defeated by Salem in their last contest, falling by a score of 19-10. Washington & Jefferson's lone victory this season came back on September 2 in a 17-8 win over Caltech. Augustana is 2-3 all-time against Washington & Jefferson, but has won the last two meetings by a combined score of 26-9.

Later in the day, the Vikings will face conference rival Austin at 1:30 p.m. CDT. The 'Roos are 1-8 in 2023 and are coming off their first victory of the season after earning a win via forfeit against Wheaton. In their last game, Austin was defeated by No. 2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps by a final of 20-5. The Vikings are 3-1 all-time against the 'Roos, which includes a 3-0 mark vs. them a year ago. Augie knocked off Austin by a score of 10-7 to earn first place in the MPSF East title game last November.

The final matchup of the weekend features Augustana and the host school Penn State Behrend Lions at 7 a.m. CDT on Sunday morning. The Lions are 3-12 this season and are looking to snap a nine-game losing streak. The team was defeated by Air Force by a score of 24-3 in their most recent outing. Augustana holds a 6-0 record vs. the Lions all-time, winning the last encounter by a score of 17-6 during the 2022 MPSF Tournament.

Live coverage of the weekend can be found here.