OVC #6
Southeast Missouri (5-0-0, 5-0-0 OVC)
vs. SIUE (5-0-0, 5-0-0 OVC)
Match Information
Date: Tuesday, March 23, 2021
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Venue: Houck Field
First Kick: 6 p.m., CT
All-Time Series: SEMO leads SIUE, 8-4-1
Last Meeting: 2-1 SIUE Win | Nov. 8, 2019 | OVC Tournament Semifinals | Houck Field
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
 
Redhawks Welcome SIUE to Cape For Senior Night Tuesday
Southeast Missouri women's soccer (5-0-0, 5-0-0 OVC) will host SIUE (5-0-0, 5-0-0 OVC) Tuesday on Senior Night at Houck Field in a battle for first in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks and the Cougars are the last two undefeated teams in the league. First kick is set for 6 p.m., CT.
 
The Redhawks will recognize seniors Kayla Byrd, Lexi Grote, Lexie Hacker and Emily Holten prior to the game Tuesday.
 
Follow the Redhawks
• Stats will be available for Tuesday's game on GoSoutheast.com.
• The game will also be streamed live on ESPN+.
• @SEMOSoccer, the official Twitter page of Redhawks soccer, will feature live in-game updates all season long.
 
Series History
SEMO leads the all-time series with SIUE, 8-4-1. The Cougars won the most recent matchup in the 2019 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Semifinals, 2-1, on Nov. 8, 2019 at Houck Field. SIUE finished as the 2019 OVC Tournament Runners-up, falling to eventual champion Belmont in penalty kicks.
 
In the 2019 regular-season meeting, SEMO overcame SIUE in overtime, 2-1, on Oct. 3 at Houck Field. The Redhawks have won or tied the last three regular-season games against the Cougars with a 1-1 draw in Edwardsville, Illinois, on Oct. 14, 2018 and a 4-1 victory over SIUE on Oct. 15, 2017.

Scouting the Cougars
SIUE is currently undefeated with a 5-0-0 record in the 2020-21 OVC season. The Cougars most recently edged Morehead State, 1-0, on March 19 at Korte Stadium in Edwardsville, Illinois.
 
SIUE is averaging 18.8 shots per game and 3.2 goals per game this season. MacKenzie Litzsinger paces the Cougars with five goals and 13 points while Sarah Hibbeler, Kayla Klipsch, Lily Schnieders and Ashlin West have all netted a pair. Schnieders has also posted four assists for six points.

Brune Named OVC Co-Defensive Player of the Week
Emma Brune was named the Ohio Valley Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Week, the league announced Sunday. Brune, a freshman from Cape Girardeau, secured her first career weekly laurel after she notched her first career goal on March 16 to provide the Redhawks a 1-0 win over Eastern Illinois in Charleston, Illinois.
 
The Saxony Lutheran alum played in all 180 minutes over the two games this past week. Brune also finished with five shots (three on target).
 
Redden Tabbed OVC Co-Goalkeeper of the Week
Bailey Redden was tabbed Ohio Valley Conference Co-Goalkeeper of the Week, the league announced Sunday.
 
Redden compiled a pair of shutouts this past week. The junior from Belleville, Illinois, made two saves on March 16 at Eastern Illinois before tallying a season-high six on March 19 against Tennessee Tech. She played in the full 90 minutes of both games and improved to 5-0-0 in 2020-21 with the pair of wins. For Redden it was her third career OVC Goalkeeper of the Week honor.
 
Redden leads the OVC with a goals against average of .200 and a save percentage of .933 with four shutouts this season.
 
About Last Week
SEMO extended its win streak to five with a pair of 1-0 wins this past week at Eastern Illinois and at home against Tennessee Tech. The Redhawks have registered four straight 1-0 wins in 2020-21.
 
Lexi Grote's goal lifted SEMO past Tennessee Tech, 1-0, on March 19 at Houck Field. Grote, a senior from Granite City, Illinois, buried a shot in the bottom left corner of the net in the 79th minute to push SEMO past the Golden Eagles. The goal was Grote's first of the 2020-21 season and came off a pass from Hannah Compernolle.
 
Compernolle is fifth in the OVC with 0.40 assists per game (team-high two assists in 2020-21).
 
SEMO has tallied the game-winner in the 79th minute of regulation in both of its most recent games.

Emma Brune compiled her first career goal to propel SEMO over Eastern Illinois, 1-0, on March 16 at Lakeside Field in Charleston, Illinois. Natalie Jackson and Emily Holten were credited with their first assists of the 2020-21 season on the play.

I'm Welking (Welker) on Sunshine
Lauren Welker notched her first three career goals as a Redhawk in the first three SEMO victories in the 2020-21 season.
 
Welker, a junior midfielder from Jackson, Missouri, has played in 394 minutes this season, and leads the team with six points and six shots on goal. She has notched a team-high two game-winning goals, which leads the conference. Welker averages 0.60 goals per game for second in the OVC.
 
Total 90
Midfielder Emma Brune and defenders Lexie Hacker and Natalie Jackson have all played in the full 90 minutes (450 total minutes) over the first five Redhawk contests this season.
 
Emily Holten played in all 90 minutes of March 16's game at EIU, posting an assist with Jackson on Emma Brune's goal.
 
Hacker tallied an assist in SEMO's home opener on March 5.
 
SEMO Debuts
Taylor Nelson, a sophomore transfer from Lindenwood, made her Redhawks debut on March 12 against Austin Peay. She finished with a shot on goal in 16 minutes on the pitch.

Gabby Gscheidmeier, a redshirt freshman from Germantown, Wisconsin, made her SEMO debut at Belmont on March 9.
 
Maddie Paulson and Faith Liljegren also both made their Redhawk debuts in the win over Jacksonville State on March 5.
 
Freshmen Nadiia Ivanchenko (twice, March 5 & 9) and Kiana Khedoo (twice, March 9 &19) have also appeared in the SEMO starting lineup and played in all five games this season.
 
OVC Preseason Poll
SEMO, the 2019 Ohio Valley Conference Regular-Season Champions, were picked to finish the 2020-21 season second in the OVC. Forward Megan Heisserer was named to the 2020-21 OVC Players Watch List.
 
The Redhawks received seven first-place votes and 172 points in the projected order of finish for second behind Murray State (181 points, five first-place votes).
 
Heisserer, a sophomore from Scott City, Missouri, was named to her first career OVC preseason team. The Notre Dame High School alum played in all 17 games during her inaugural collegiate season, starting in eight. Heisserer tallied four goals and two assists for 10 points last season including a pair of game-winning goals. She was third on the team with 30 shots.
 
2019 OVC Regular-Season Champs Recap
The 2019 Redhawks fashioned an 11-5-1 mark, tallying a record of 8-1-1 in conference play to win their sixth OVC regular-season crown in program history and first outright title since 2011.
 
SEMO was undefeated at home with a 7-0 record at Houck Field in 2019 and entered the 2019 OVC Tournament with a mark of 6-0-1. Head Coach Heather Nelson was awarded her fifth OVC Coach of the Year honor in 2019.
 
Roster Breakdown
The 2020-21 roster features 22 student-athletes including 15 players from the 2019 OVC Regular-Season Championship team. Emily Holten, Lexi Grote, Hannah Compernolle, Lexie Hacker and Kayla Byrd return for their senior seasons.
 
Junior Bailey Redden returns in net and started 16 games in 2019. Redden made 90 saves and posted four shutouts, compiling a 9-0-1 mark.
 
Megan Heisserer was the fourth leading scorer in 2019 with four goals. Kennedy Jones chipped in a pair last season. Grote and Morgan McCourt each had one.
 
Freshmen Emma Brune, Nadiia Ivanchenko, Kiana Khedoo, Maddie Paulson, Laura Galindo Mejia, Faith Liljegren and sophomore transfer Taylor Nelson are the newcomers on the squad. Nelson is the daughter of head coach Heather Nelson and associate head coach Paul Nelson.
 
Looking Ahead
After Tuesday's Senior Night, SEMO heads to Kentucky for a pair of OVC games against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State. The Redhawks will face EKU on Friday at 3 p.m., CT in Richmond, Kentucky, before closing the trip to the Bluegrass State, on Sunday, March 28 at Morehead State in Morehead, Kentucky.