Valparaiso University women’s soccer head coach John Marovich announced his squad’s schedule for the upcoming 2016 season today, a schedule which includes eight home games at Brown Field.

The 2016 slate opens with a pair of exhibition contests, as the Crusaders play at Western Illinois on Aug. 9 and host Ohio on Aug. 12. The regular season gets underway for Valpo with two road games on the opening weekend of action – at IUPUI on Aug. 19 and at Bowling Green on Aug. 21 – before the team returns to Brown Field for the regular season home opener versus New Mexico State on Aug. 26.

The non-league slate is highlighted by a trip to Nebraska’s Cornhusker Classic, where Valpo will take on Saint Louis (Sept. 2) and Kansas (Sept. 4), as well as a road game at defending MAC champion Western Michigan (Sept. 11). Other non-league contests include home games against IPFW (Sept. 9) and Morehead State (Sept. 18) and a short trip to Chicago to take on Loyola (Aug. 28).

Horizon League action opens for the Crusaders on the road at Cleveland State on Sept. 16, with the first league home game coming Sept. 24 against Detroit. Valpo will also host Milwaukee (Sept. 28), Youngstown State (Oct. 15) and Oakland (Oct. 22) in Horizon League play, while traveling to face Green Bay (Oct. 1), Wright State (Oct. 8), UIC (Oct. 19) and Northern Kentucky (Oct. 28).

The Horizon League Championship opens Oct. 31 with a pair of first-round games, while the league’s regular season champion will host the semifinals and title game on Nov. 3 and 5, respectively. The tournament champion will represent the Horizon League in the 2016 NCAA Tournament.