SHAWNEE, Okla. – Midwestern State opens the 2026 season on the road Thursday night as it visits Oklahoma Baptist at OBU Soccer Complex. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Midwestern State is coming off its second straight NCAA postseason appearance after finishing the season with an 11-3-6 record. The Mustangs were 4-1-5 on the road last season, including a 2-0 victory over No. 1-ranked Dallas Baptist in the regular season finale.

Marlene Myrvold scored seven goals and had two assists and is the highest point scorer returning from last year's team. The Norwegian midfielder was the MSU 24Strong Teammate of the Year for women's soccer in 2025.  The senior transferred to MSU from Grambling State. Myrvold scored her first goal as a Mustang in the 11th minute of a season-opening 2-2 draw at Southern Nazarene last season. 

Morgan Countryman assisted on that goal and finished her freshman campaign with two goals and three assists last season. Countryman was selected as a 2026 Preseason Offensive Player to Watch in the Lone Star Conference. The sophomore from Rockwall, Texas, put nine of 28 shots on goal last season and scored twice in a 2-1 victory over UT Permian Basin. Countryman was third-team All-Conference and made the LSC All-Freshman Team last year.

Sophomore Bella Rose, who is from Wichita Falls, was selected as a 2026 Preseason Defensive Player to Watch in the LSC after she earned second-team All-Conference honors last season. Rose was named to the LSC All-Freshman Team as well as the LSC All-Tournament team after starting all 20 matches and playing 1,773 minutes in the Maroon and Gold last fall.

Sophomore Lauren Short, who was LSC Goalkeeper of the Week after posting a clean sheet against the top-ranked Patriots, is one of the Preseason LSC Goalkeepers to Watch. She was third team All-Conference after starting 10 games and appearing in 12 for the Mustangs last season. Short, a product of Frisco, Texas, was part of three combined shutouts and had three shutouts in 90-minute performances against Angelo State, DBU and St. Edward's. She finished the campaign with a 0.83 goals-against average and stopped 72 percent of the shots she faced while in goal for the Mustangs.

Midwestern State is meeting the Bison for the eighth time in program history. The Mustangs lead the all-time series 5-1-1 and won the last encounter two years ago in Shawnee, 1-0, as Nyxalee Munoz scored in the 56th minute, and Allison Dellis made nine saves.

Oklahoma Baptist only win against MSU came at OBU Soccer Complex in 2018, when the Bison shut out the Mustangs, 2-0, scoring twice in the first half.
Last season, the Bison missed the four-team GAC Tournament and subsequently did not play for the conference's tournament final for the first time since joining the league a decade ago. OBU finished the season with a 2-11-5 record and was winless at home with a 0-7-1 record.

Oklahoma Baptist is picked to finish in a tie for sixth with East Central in the GAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.

Lex Williamson led the Bison with five goals last season but transferred to Dallas Baptist. Senior midfielder Hali White is the leading goal scorer returning from last year's squad after netting two goals for Oklahoma Baptist last season, including the only goal in a 1-1 draw at Angelo State.

Midwestern State hosts Ouachita Baptist from the GAC in the home opener on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.