This continues our a series of daily articles previewing each men's and women's college conference. All the conference previews can be found here.

A pair of Midwestern mid-major conferences are in the spotlight today as we continue our series of previews in women’s college soccer.

Horizon League

Defending champions Wisconsin-Milwaukee recorded a perfect 8-0-0 conference record last year. Sarah Hagen tallied a national best 24 goals for Michael Moynihan’s team, with last year’s League Newcomer of the Year Helen Steinhauser also returning.

Wright State’s talented midfielder Brittany Persaud spent her summer helping the Guyana Women’s National Team qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The bad news for Pat Ferguson’s Raiders is that the event falls in the middle of the college season this fall.

John Marovich’s Valparaiso Crusaders are looking forward to another season with sophomores Luisa Desario and Rachel Hoaglin providing a double-barreled attack. Rachel Hoaglin will be an anchor in the midfield.

The Loyola-Chicago(w) Ramblers will be looking for some offensive production, with newcomer Alex Brown and returnees Lauren Trevillian and Nikki Staton the most likely sources. Katie Groesch returns as a solid goalkeeper.

Tari St. John’s Butler Bulldogs are young, younger and youngest with freshmen taking 12 of 22 spots on the roster. Defender Sarah Phelps will be counted on for veteran leadership.

Icelandic youth international Hekla Palmodottir is among an intriguing list of newcomers at Wisconsin Green Bay. Maddie Drusch returns in goal for Trevor Warren’s Phoenix.

Cleveland State will look for rapid improvement over last year’s season that saw the Vikings outscored 45-12. A pair of newcomers named Taylor, Taylor Vidovic and Taylor  Miller, should help the team create more chances.

Youngstown State loses leading scorer Kara Cooper, while Canadian forward Kaitlyn Quarrell could provide an offensive boost for Detroit Mercy.

Summit League

Defending champion IUPUI(w) loses Katrina McCrory from a potent offense, but Alicia Brock and leading scorer Megan Hock return to Chris Johnson’s squad. Watch out for freshman midfielder Sarah Wong.

South Dakota State returns high-scoring trip Kayla Braffet, Danni Healey and Kaitlin Justice, while Abbey Stratton and Brooklyn Dyce return for Pete Cuadrado’s North Dakota State Bison.
 
At Oral Roberts, Ryan Bush returns 9 starters including goalkeeper Lauren Wheeler and defenders Lauren Parks and Anna Bickens. Defense was a byword at Western Illinois as well, and goalkeeper Laura Atkinson looks to improve on a solid 1.12 goals against average.

Nick O’Shea’s Oakland Grizzlies welcome back midfield trio Dani Haelewyn, Sarah Lynch and Amy Trandell, while IPFW will be led offensively by Lisa Underwood (11 goals). At Centenary, Glenn Evans is back on the helm, taking the reins again after a previous 14-year stint in charge. His first task will be to replace the goalscoring of Katie Valdez.

At Southern Utah, the main task for coach Brian Stock is to improve a team defense that allowed 40 goals in 2009. Anita Rodriguez and the UMKC Kangaroos were outscored 54-12 last year in a 1-17-1 campaign.