TIFFIN, OH – The Augustana Vikings men's lacrosse team opened the 2026 season in dramatic fashion on Saturday afternoon, grinding out a 7–6 victory over Heidelberg at Hoernemann Stadium.

Augustana wasted little time getting on the board. Just over a minute into play, Santino Enea broke through with the first goal of the season off a feed from Nik Schaafsma, setting the tone early. After Heidelberg answered to even the score, Schaafsma delivered a momentum-swinging strike in the final 30 seconds of the opening period, giving Augie a 2–1 lead heading into the second.

The second quarter belonged to Heidelberg, as the Student Princes scored twice and held Augustana scoreless, briefly taking a 3–2 lead and putting the Vikings on the ropes at halftime. Goalkeeper Hagan Quigley turned away several dangerous attempts to keep the deficit at just one.

After the break, the Vikings erupted for four unanswered goals to retake control. Jamar Taylor sparked the rally with a gritty man-down goal to tie the game. Moments later, Eddie Resendez capitalized off another Schaafsma assist before Connor Schlachter added to the surge with an unassisted strike. Enea capped the run with his second goal of the day, giving Augustana full control and a commanding 6–3 lead.

Schaafsma extended the advantage early in the fourth quarter, burying his second goal of the contest to push the Viking lead to 7–3 and complete a five-goal unanswered stretch.

The Student Princes refused to go quietly, kickstarting a late comeback with three goals in the final stanza, including two in the final three minutes to cut the deficit to one. But Quigley denied the Berg a comeback, finishing with 17 saves on the afternoon.

Schaafsma led the offensive effort with a five-point performance, scoring twice and dishing out three assists while firing a team-high eight shots. Enea added two goals of his own, while Resendez, Taylor, and Schlachter each found the back of the net. Resendez was also instrumental at the faceoff X, winning seven draws and helping Augustana control key possessions. The Vikings also won the ground ball battle 33–30 and held Heidelberg scoreless during the decisive third-quarter run.

The Vikings move to 1-0 on the year, and will look to continue to build on the season opening win as they travel to Benedictine on Wednesday, February 18. First draw is set for 3:30 p.m.