Northfield and Mankato finished in the bottom half of the Big 9 Conference standings a season ago. But this year, both have been on the upswing and sitting atop the Big 9 standings after going unbeaten in conference play.
Mankato (2-0, 2-0) has already matched its win total from a season ago and is looking to do more behind the play of its standout players such as junior attackman Stephen Schwartz, who entered the season as the program's all-time leading scorer.
Schwartz has six goals in his first two games this year, including four in a 12-7 win over Rochester John Marshall/Lourdes on April 24. Fellow junior attackman Benjamin Kies tallied a hat trick in the win.
After a season-opening loss to Duluth, Northfield (2-1, 2-0) has righted the ship and settled into conference play. The Raiders rolled through Rochester Century in their league opener with Nick Orosco, Isak Johnson and Dawson Foster each scoring a hat trick in a 19-5 win. The three have helped Northfield average nearly 12 goals per game this season.