Redhawks Open 2022 Campaign at Missouri Thursday Before Hosting Illinois Springfield in Home Opener Sunday

Thursday, August 18

Columbia, Mo.

7 p.m.

Southeast Missouri State University

Missouri

Photo by: Jan Salmon

8/17/2022 8:21:00 AM | Women's Soccer

Regular-Season Opener
Game #1
Southeast Missouri (0-0-0)
at Missouri (0-0-0)
Match Information
Date: Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022
Location: Columbia, Mo.
Venue: Audrey J. Walton Soccer Stadium
First Kick: 7 p.m., CT
All-Time Series: Missouri leads the all-time series, 1-0-1
Last Meeting: 4-0 Missouri Win | Columbia, Mo. | Aug. 30, 2013
Live Video: SEC Network+ (Nate Gatter and Matthew Jacobsze)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Home Opener
Game #2
Southeast Missouri (0-0-0)
vs. Illinois Springfield (0-0-0)
Match Information
Date: Sunday, Aug. 21, 2022
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Venue: Houck Field
First Kick: 6 p.m., CT
All-Time Series: SEMO leads the all-time series, 3-0-0
Last Meeting: 3-0 SEMO Win | Cape Girardeau, Mo. | Aug. 24, 2018
Live Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets

Game Notes: Southeast Missouri at Missouri (PDF) | Southeast Missouri vs. Illinois Springfield (PDF)
2022 Statistics | UIS Roster | Missouri Recap
Media Guide: Southeast Missouri

Redhawks Open 2022 Campaign at Missouri Thursday Before Hosting Illinois Springfield in Home Opener Sunday
Southeast Missouri women's soccer opens its 2022 regular season Thursday night in Columbia, Missouri, when they take on SEC (Southeastern Conference) member Missouri at Audrey J. Watson Soccer Stadium. First kick is slated for 7 p.m., CT. The Redhawks then return to Cape Girardeau for their regular-season home opener at Houck Field against Illinois Springfield on Sunday at 6 p.m., CT.

Follow the Redhawks
• Stats will be available for Thursday and Sunday's game on SEMORedhawks.com
• @SEMOSoccer, the official Twitter page of Redhawks soccer, will feature live in-game updates all season long.

Series History
Tigers
Missouri leads the all-time series with Southeast Missouri, 1-0-1. The Tigers won the most recent meeting, 4-0, Aug. 30, 2013, in Columbia, Missouri.

Prior to that occasion, SEMO and #23 Missouri played to a 1-1 draw in the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 16, 2007, in Columbia, Missouri, with the Tigers advancing on penalty kicks, 2-0.

Prairie Stars
SEMO leads the all-time series with Illinois Springfield, 3-0-0. In each of the last three meetings, the Redhawks have scored three goals.

SEMO most recently beat the Prairie Stars, 3-0, Aug. 24, 2018, at Houck Field in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Morgan McCourt scored a pair of goals while Jennifer Brien attacked UIS first with a goal in the 19th minute.

Scouting the Opponents
Tigers
Missouri finished the 2021 season with a 7-10 (3-7 SEC) record in head coach Stefanie Golan's first season at the helm. The Tigers added 10 freshmen and one transfer to the roster in July.

Milena Fischer represented the Tigers on the 2021 Southeastern Conference All-Freshman team. Fischer had a breakout season with five goals and five assists, leading Missouri in goals and points, while finishing second on the team in assists.

Prairie Stars
Illinois Springfield, a NCAA Division II institution, posted a 7-7-2 mark in 2021 (5-7-1 Great Lakes Valley Conference), their second-best winning percentage in program history.

Sierra Cenek was named to the 2021 Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) women's soccer All-Midwest Region Second-Team. She played in 15 games, including 14 starts, and was on the field for 67.5 percent of the team's play. Cenek had a team-high seven goals, 15 points, and recorded one assist.

Redhawk From CoMo
Freshman goalkeeper Sophia Elfrink will return to her hometown of Columbia, Missouri, Thursday for SEMO's 2022 opener. She started and played the entire 90 minutes of the Western Illinois exhibition game on Aug. 7. Elfrink graduated from David H. Hickman High School in May 2022 and was named the All-Region Central Missouri Activities Conference Goalkeeper of the Year as a junior. She played her freshman season at Father Tolton Catholic High School.

Exhibition Play in 2022
SEMO faced Western Illinois (Aug. 7 in Macomb, Illinois) and Central Arkansas (Aug. 14 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri) during the preseason. The Redhawks tied both contests, 1-1, and, 2-2, respectively.

Cayla Koerner, a freshman from Mahomet, Illinois, registered a goal and an assist against UCA. Elizabeth Rater registered a goal in each game and Kiana Khedoo notched a goal versus UCA.

Six freshmen started for the Redhawks in goalkeepers Sophia Elfrink and Sarah Pattillo, defenders Macie Hockett and Alayna Jakul, midfielder Zoe Houston, and Koerner over the two games. Hockett, Jakul, Houston, and Koerner all started both contests.

Emma Brune and Natalie Jackson both competed in the full 90 minutes against UCA. Jackson did not leave the pitch over the two contests.

2022 OVC Preseason Poll
Southeast Missouri women's soccer was selected to finish the 2022 season fifth in the Ohio Valley Conference, the league announced Aug. 11. Sophomore midfielder Elizabeth Rater was tabbed to the 2022 OVC Soccer Preseason Players to Watch List.

SIUE, the 2021 OVC Regular-Season and Tournament Champions, was picked first with 11 first-place votes and 123 points. UT Martin, the 2021 OVC Regular Season Champions, was pegged second with seven first-place votes and 119 points.

Rater, a Mequon, Wisconsin, native, was named to her first career OVC preseason team Thursday. She led SEMO offensively in 2021 with three goals and was second on the team with six points (3g). In conference play, Rater paced the Redhawks with two goals and four points in eight games and was selected to the 2021 OVC Second-Team and All-Newcomer Team. She appeared in all 19 games, making nine starts during her freshman campaign in 2021.

SEMO Schedule
The Redhawks will play 16 regular-season games during the 2022 campaign. The slate features eight non-conference contests and eight home games at Houck Field.

The 2022 schedule also includes eight Ohio Valley Conference games beginning with SIUE, the 2021 OVC Tournament Champions and Regular-Season Champions, on Sept. 18 at Houck Field. SEMO will also host OVC foes Lindenwood (Oct. 2), Morehead State (Oct. 9) and Southern Indiana (Oct. 20) in 2022.

The 2022 OVC Tournament Championship will be contested Oct. 28 through Nov. 6. The first two rounds will be hosted on campus sites (with the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds hosting) while the semifinals and championship will be played on campus at the No. 1 seed and regular-season champion.

Roster Breakdown
The Redhawks return five All-OVC players this season in midfielders Kiana Khedoo (2021 Second-Team) and Elizabeth Rater (2021 Second-Team and All-Newcomer Team), redshirt senior forward Morgan McCourt (2020-21 Tournament, 2018 All-Newcomer), senior defender Natalie Jackson (2019 All-Tournament) and Cape Girardeau midfielder/defender Emma Brune (2020-21 Second Team, All-Newcomer and Tournament).

The 2022 team features 25 student-athletes including 16 returners and nine newcomers.

Head coach Heather Nelson will lead the Redhawks in her 24th season at SEMO in 2022.

Newcomers
The 2022 squad also features nine freshmen in goalkeepers Sophia Elfrink and Sarah Pattillo, defenders Ella Baldwin, Macie Hockett and Alayna Jakul, midfielders Josetiarainnah Olaco and Zoe Houston, and forwards Cayla Koerner and Navi Washington.

The Jackson 4
SEMO has four players from Jackson, Missouri, on their 2022 roster with sophomores Grace Crowden and Katelyn Miller, along with seniors Natalie Miller and Taylor Nelson.

Home Grown from the Southeast Region of Missouri
The 2022 Redhawks roster features six players from the Southeast region of Missouri. In addition to the four Jackson student-athletes in Grace Crowden, Katelyn Miller, Natalie Miller, and Taylor Nelson, the group of locals also includes Emma Brune (Cape Girardeau, Saxony Lutheran HS) and Megan Heisserer (Scott City, Notre Dame HS).

Academic Excellence
Redhawks Soccer led the Southeast Missouri Athletics Department with eight Ohio Valley Conference Academic Medals of Honor for the 2021-22 academic year. Emma Brune, Kate Daus, Lexi Grote, Katelyn Miller, Taylor Nelson, Maddie Paulson, Elizabeth Rater, and Bailey Redden all carried a perfect 4.0 grade point average.

SEMO also had 21 student-athletes named to the OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll for the 2021-22 academic year. Emma Brune, Anne-Clara Couturier, Grace Crowden, Kate Daus, Lexi Grote, Gabby Gscheidmeier, Megan Heisserer, Natalie Jackson, Kiana Khedoo, Faith Liljegren, Mariah Mannino, Zoey Memmel, Katelyn Miller, Natalie Miller, Taylor Nelson, Maddie Paulson, Elizabeth Rater, Bailey Redden, Abby Rollet, Emma Tucker, and Lauren Welker achieved a 3.25 GPA or higher for the honor.

SEMO earned the United Soccer Coaches College Team Academic Award as recognition for their exemplary performance in the classroom during the 2021-22 academic year. The Redhawks posted a 3.76 GPA for their third-straight distinction from United Soccer Coaches and 11th overall in program history.

2021 Season Recap
SEMO finished 2021 as an OVC Tournament Semifinalist, going on a Cinderella run as the #7-seed. The Redhawks edged #6 Morehead State, 1-0, in the First Round before eliminating Quarterfinals host, #3 Belmont, 2-1, in overtime. The Redhawks then fell to #2 SIUE, the 2021 OVC Tournament Champions, in the Semifinals.

SEMO finished the 2021 campaign with a 7-10-2 overall record (2-4-2 in the OVC).

Kiana Khedoo and Elizabeth Rater earned 2021 Second-Team All-OVC honors. Rater was also named to the OVC All-Newcomer Team. Seniors Lauren Welker and Bailey Redden were also both named to the 2021 All-OVC Championship Tournament team.

Looking Ahead
After SEMO's opening week of the 2022 season, the Redhawks next head to Missouri State on Thursday, Aug. 25 in Springfield, Missouri. First kick is 2 p.m., CT. SEMO then hosts Columbia College (Mo.) on Sunday, Aug. 28 at Houck Field with kick off set for 6 p.m., CT.