GALESBURG, Ill. –  The Augustana Viking's men's soccer team will hit the road for a non-conference battle against the Knox Prairie Fire on Wednesday, September 6. 

The Vikings' season opener and home debut took place over the weekend, as the team traveled to Indianola, Iowa on Friday and fell 4-0 to Simpson before succumbing 3-0 to the Carleton Knights at Thorson-Lucken Field on Sunday. 

Augie showed early aggression against the Storm, firing a pair of shots on goal in the first seven minutes, but neither converted to points. Simpson then pressed into the Vikings' defense, striking twice with under 25 minutes remaining in the first half to take a 2-0 lead into the locker room. Augustana sent three unsuccessful shots in the Storms' direction just minutes into the second period, but Simpson capitalized by slicing through the Augustana defense twice more to put the game at its 4-0 final. Ignacio Alberola secured five saves against nine total shot attempts. 

On Sunday, Augie fell behind early in their home opener as visiting Carleton registered their first score just over five minutes into the game. Alberola began his 10-save performance with seven saves across the next 30 minutes, but the Knights squeaked a shot into the net near the 40-minute mark to go ahead 2-0 at the break. The Vikings tried to apply pressure in the second period with four shot attempts, but a strike at 71:37 from Carleton cemented the game's 3-0 final score. 

Knox enters Wednesday's home contest with an 0-2 record after suffering opening weekend road losses to No. 8 Gustavus Adolphus and No. 14 St. Olaf. After a successful strike from the Gusties seven minutes into Friday's game, the Prairie Fire did not allow a score the rest of the way. In goal, Knox faced 21 shots and recorded nine total saves. In their non-conference matchup on Sunday, Knox could not contain the Oles' offensive intensity and fell by a 7-0 final. Against 28 shots faced, the Prairie Fire tallied eight total saves. 

The Vikings hold a 20-5-1 advantage against Knox in the all-time series, with the most recent meeting between the two programs resulting in a 1-0 double-overtime victory on September 18, 2021. In the 105th minute, Augie sent in a strike from outside the box into the top left corner of the goal to walk away with the win. Frankie Baio recorded eight saves to secure the shutout, including seven outside the first period. 

Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. from Jorge Prats Field. Live video and stat links can be found here.