The COVID-19 pandemic, however, halted the momentum and cancelled the 2020 season, creating a 21 month hiatus from the final game in 2019 to the first game of the 2021 season set for this fall.
The team failed to hang their heads on the cancelled season and instead trained in the fall of 2020 and competed in 13 exhibition games in the spring of 2021, in preparation for the coming season.
"It was great to be able to get some competition, to be playing against other opponents," head coach Brandon Barkus said. "We got off to a slow start, going 1-4-1, but then finished really strong and wound up with a 7-4-2 record."
Two of those wins came against soccer-powerhouse Minnesota State, defeating them at home and on the road in 2021 after narrow one-goal losses to the Mavericks in 2019 in the regular season and NCAA Tournament. The season then culminated with a Senior Day victory over Sioux Falls.
"They were really happy to be playing," said Barkus when asked about the approach of his team to the non-traditional season. "They approached it like they would any other season. They got after it, hit the weight room hard, bought into fitness and brought positive energy to training daily."
Not only valuable to the players, the spring games also benefited the coaching staff for the upcoming 2021 season.
"It's extremely valuable from the standpoint of giving [Coach] Spader and I the opportunity to evaluate where we are and where we can be this fall," said Barkus. "We've got some film that we will be able to watch, break down with our players and see what our system looks like."
After initial breakdowns of the 2021 spring games, the coaching staff saw great development with different aspects of the team.
Freshman defender Mackenzie Ternes saw significant minutes and started a few matches, developing great cohesion with fellow teammates Bailey Parsons and Savannah Ellender (both of whom logged over 1,300 minutes in 2019) on the back line.
In goal, redshirt-freshman Jillian Barkus played well and was in net for both victories over Minnesota State.
Offensively, sophomore forward Josie Arduser and junior forward Alexis Legg each scored five goals while sophomore forward Sylvia Fehr also saw significant minutes. Arduser previously broke the assists record with eight in 2019 while Legg earned NSIC Freshman of the Year honors in 2018 with 11 goals scored.
Other standouts in 2021 included sophomore midfielders Kelly Kleekamp and Katherine Pelton along with junior forward Morgan Keirstead.
While the 2021 team brings in a new class of Vikings, it also means the exit for the seniors who missed out on the opportunity to compete in 2020.
"One of the greatest things about playing was giving our four seniors closure to their careers," said Barkus. "Skylar Moen, Izzy Hedge, Kelly Partington and Shannon McKnight are extraordinary young women who illuminated every positive aspect of what we try to do as a program. They are truly, truly going to be missed."
The aforementioned seniors were all a part of the 2017, 2018 and 2019 teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament. When asked about similar expectations for the 2021 team, Coach Barkus was clear that nothing has changed.
"I expect us to continue to do that. I expect us to win, to win a postseason conference tournament, to win an NCAA Regional Tournament and I expect us to advance to the NCAA's. And I believe that all of our players expect the same thing."
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Augustana Soccer: Conquering the Challenges of COVID and Looking Ahead to 2021 - Augustana College Vikings
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