This past weekend, the Augustana Vikings men's and women's soccer teams travelled to ice cold Fort McMurray for a double header match up against the Keyano Huskies. On Saturday night on the frozen turf, the women braved the cold and cruised to a 3 – 0 victory on first half goals by Angela Tan and Lauren Feth and a second half goal by Lauren Lutz. When the men kicked off shortly after 6pm, the temperature gauges were reading -3 with a wind chill of -7. The game was very competitive but ended in a 1 – 0 victory for the nationally ranked Huskies. The Vikings enjoyed stand out performances all over the field while putting in what the coaches called the best team performance of the season.

On Sunday, the weather took a turn for the worse. During the women's 1 – 1 tie, both teams faced difficult conditions with heavy freezing rain, high winds, and a still frozen turf. The slippery conditions were less than ideal but the woman competed hard and escaped with a well-earned point. When the men's team began to warm up, the freezing rain turned to snow. Very quickly, snow began to accumulate on the field and lines began to disappear. Despite the worsening conditions, the game kicked off shortly after 2pm. Once again, the Vikings competed against the higher ranked, more experienced, first place Keyano Huskies. John Aitken, the Vikings goalkeeper, enjoyed a memorable first half with numerous gravity defying saves. The defensive line, anchored by captain Braeden McKenzie, held strong in the difficult winter conditions. With ten minutes to go in the half, Mother Nature once again stepped up the challenge when the snowfall became heavy and began to accumulate 2 or 3 centimeters every few minutes.

When the halftime whistle blew, Keyano enjoyed a 1 – 0 lead. More importantly however, the on field conditions now included close to 5 centimeters of snow. Conversations between the referees, coaches, and captains began as the teams returned to their dressing rooms to unthaw. It soon became clear that the conditions would not be improving anytime soon; as a result, the decision was made that it would no longer be safe to continue the game. With the pressure of performance removed, the Vikings returned to the snow-covered field to collect their gear, enjoy the moment, and capture a picture to remember the experience. Following the picture and a few stray snowballs, the men quickly gathered their things, exchanged goodbyes and good luck wishes with the Huskies, joined the women on the bus, and began the long, arduous trip home!