Game #11
Lindenwood (4-6-2, 1-1-1 OVC)
vs. Southeast Missouri (5-5-0, 1-1-0 OVC)
Match Information
Date: Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022 
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo. 
Venue: Houck Field
First Kick: 1 p.m., CT
All-Time Series: SEMO leads the All-Time Series with Lindenwood, 1-0
Last Meeting: 2-0 SEMO Win | Cape Girardeau, Mo. | Oct. 4, 2013
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets
 
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri
 
Redhawks Return to Houck Field Sunday to Take on Lindenwood to Continue OVC Play
Southeast Missouri women's soccer (5-5-0, 1-1-0 OVC) will be back in the friendly confines of Houck Field on Sunday when they take on the newest member of the Ohio Valley Conference, Lindenwood (4-6-2, 1-1-1 OVC). First kick is slated for 1 p.m., CT.
 
Follow the Redhawks
• Stats will be available for Sunday's game on SEMORedhawks.com
• Due to the ongoing construction at Houck Field and for the health and safety of our players, the rest of the 2022 home schedule will not be broadcasted on ESPN+ 
• @SEMOSoccer, the official Twitter page of Redhawks soccer, will feature live in-game updates all season long.
 
Series History
Sunday's matchup between the two schools will be just the second matchup of all-time with the Redhawks winning the previous matchup, 2-0, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, on October 4, 2013. 
 
Storm French (fifth minute) and Torey Byrd (85th minute) both scored for the Redhawks in the meeting. 
 
That season, the Redhawks finished 8-7-3 (6-2-2 OVC) overall and were led in scoring by Natasha Minor (4g-4a-12pts) and Erin Shulman with four goals apiece. 
 
The matchup on Sunday will also mark the first time that these two schools will both compete as NCAA Division I institutions with Lindenwood joining the Ohio Valley Conference and transitioning from Division II in July. 
 
Scouting the Opponent
The Lions enter Sunday's match having already played three conference matches with a win over first-year OVC member Arkansas-Little Rock (1-0, Sept. 18) and a tie with Tennessee Tech (0-0, Sept. 25). Their lone conference loss came at the hands of SIUE by a final score of 2-1 (Sep. 22). 
 
In the non-conference portion of their 2022 schedule, Lindenwood picked up one Division-I win over Southern Illinois by a final score of 2-0 on Aug. 18. 
 
Lindenwood's last match was Sept. 25, when they went on the road to take on Tennessee Tech. A defensive slugfest, the Lions were led by senior goalkeeper, Sam Blazek, who registered eight saves on 27 shots. Blazek has played the full 90-minutes in every match this season but three and has tallied 57 saves on the entire season. 
 
The match remained scoreless for the entire duration, freshman Lily Sutter led the Lions in shots and shots on goal with one. As a team, the Lions have scored 13 goals on 66 total shots during the 2022 season. With 35 shots on goal, they have a .530 shot on goal percentage midway through the season. 
 
Redhawks From St. Charles
The 2022 SEMO roster features three student-athletes from St. Charles, Missouri, in freshmen Alayna Jakul (Orchard Farm HS) and Zoe Houston (Francis Howell HS) along with senior Mariah Mannino (Francis Howell Central HS).
 
Besides those three, the Redhawks also have four more from the St. Louis/St. Charles area in Emma Tucker (Wentzville, Missouri), Natalie Jackson (O'Fallon, Missouri), Macie Hockett (Glen Carbon, Illinois) and Faith Liljegren (Collinsville, Illinois).
 
Last Time Out
SEMO picked up a victory last Thursday (Sept. 25) in Charleston, Illinois, led by freshmen Cayla Koerner and Alayna Jakul who both found the back of the net to give SEMO a 2-1 victory over Eastern Illinois and it's first OVC win of the season. 
 
For both Koerner and Jakul, the goals were both their second of the season and their first goals in conference play in 2022. 
 
Koerner led the way with three shots (1 SOG) while making her first start since Sept. 1 at Colorado College. She finished with a career-high 79 minutes. 
 
Jakul finished with two shots (1 SOG) to go with her game winner over 72 minutes. She paces the Redhawks with five points (2g-1a) in 2022. 
 
In the OVC, Jakul and Megan Heisserer lead the league with two game winners each. 
 
Emma Brune and Faith Liljegren picked up the assists for each goal, with Brune assisting Koerner while Liljegren assisted Jakul on the game-winner. 
 
The assist for Brune is her first in her career as a Redhawk. For Liljegren, the assist to Jakul registered as her second on the season. She currently leads the team in that category through 10 games.  
 
Sophia Elfrink registered three saves to improve her record to 5-5-0 on the year and earned her first career OVC win. 
 
Emma Tucker made her first start of the 2022 season in the SEMO midfield. She finished with a personal-best 71 minutes on the pitch.
 
The Redhawks were outshot in the match 10-8 (4-2 SOG) by the Panthers. 
 
Emma Brune, Mariah Mannino, and Natalie Jackson all competed in the full 90 minutes Thursday.
 
For Brune, it was her eighth-straight game (ninth in 2022) while it was the fifth of the season for Mannino. 
 
For Jackson, it was her 10th consecutive game of total 90 soccer.
 
Our Keeper
Freshman goalie Sophia Elfrink paces the league in net thus far in 2022. She is first in the OVC with a save percentage of 0.857, a 6.00 saves per game average and 60 total saves. Elfrink, a Columbia, Missouri, native, also ranks third with goalie minutes played (900:00), goals against average (1.000), and shutouts (3).
 
Koerner and Brune Continue Southeast Missouri Family Legacy on the Soccer Pitch 
The tandem of Greg Brune (quarterback) and Chuck Koerner (wide receiver) teamed up for touchdowns on the gridiron to lead the Southeast Missouri football team in the 1960s and now their granddaughters, Emma Brune and Cayla Koerner, are currently adding their own chapters to their family legacies as members of the Redhawks women's soccer team. 
 
The family connection came full circle in SEMO's most recent game at Eastern Illinois on Sept. 22 with Emma Brune hooking up with Cayla Koerner for a goal in the 15th minute.

Total 90 Tracker
Through the first 10 games, defender Natalie Jackson, along with goalkeeper Sophia Elfrink have played in all 900 minutes of regulation.
 
Emma Brune has played in the full 90 in each of the last eight games (nine in 2022). Maddie Paulson has played in the total 90 in three of the last four games. 
 
Mariah Mannino played in the full regulation in each of the first four contests in 2022 and most recently at Eastern Illinois (Sept. 22).
  
Full Regulation Games
Natalie Jackson (Missouri, UIS, Missouri State, Columbia College, Colorado College, Colorado State, Evansville, Southern Illinois, SIUE, Eastern Illinois)

Sophia Elfrink (Missouri, UIS, Missouri State, Columbia College, Colorado College, Colorado State, Evansville, Southern Illinois, SIUE, Eastern Illinois)

Emma Brune (Missouri, Missouri State, Columbia College, Colorado College, Colorado State, Evansville, Southern Illinois, SIUE, Eastern Illinois)
 
Mariah Mannino (Missouri, UIS, Missouri State, Columbia College, Eastern Illinois)

Maddie Paulson (Evansville, Southern Illinois, SIUE)

Faith Liljegren (Missouri)

Alayna Jakul (Missouri)
 
Non-Conference Recap
SEMO fashioned a 4-4-0 non-conference mark with wins over Illinois-Springfield (2-0, Aug. 21), Columbia College (1-0, Aug. 28), Colorado College (2-1, Sept. 1) and Evansville (1-0, Sept. 8).
 
The Redhawks opened the 2022 campaign with a loss at Missouri (0-1, Aug. 18) and also fell at Missouri State (0-2, Aug. 25), at Colorado State (0-2, Sept. 4) and against Southern Illinois (0-1, Sept. 11).
 
Megan Heisserer leads the SEMO offense with two goals (both game winners) and an assist (five points, 10 shots, 4 SOG) in her return from a season-ending injury suffered in the 2020-21 season opener (March 5, 2021).
 
Faith Liljegren (1g-1a-3pts), Alayna Jakul (1g-1a-3pts), Cayla Koerner, and Zoey Memmel have all notched a goal in non-conference play. Koerner has registered a team-high 12 shots (6 SOG). Liljegren has posted 10 shots (4 SOG) while Memmel has nine shots (6 SOG).
 
Freshman goalkeeper Sophia Elfrink has started and competed in all eight games (720 minutes), tallying 50 saves (.877 save percentage) for a 4-4-0 mark (7 goals allowed, 0.88 GAA) including a trio of shutouts. 
 
Defender Natalie Jackson is the lone Redhawks field player to compete in the full 720 minutes of regulation of non-conference play. 
 
Redhawks Debuts
Five freshmen made their SEMO debuts Aug. 18 against Missouri in Cayla Koerner, Sophia Elfrink, Alayna Jakul, Zoe Houston, and Ella Baldwin. Koerner, Elfrink, Jakul, and Houston were all featured in the Redhawks starting XI.
 
Navi Washington and Macie Hockett both made their Redhawk debuts Aug. 21 against Illinois Springfield. Baldwin made her first career start on defense, tallying a shot in 63 minutes against UIS.
  
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.
 
Next Time Out
The Redhawks will be back in action on Thursday, Oct. 6 when they head to the Natural State to take on Little Rock. The match will take place at the Coleman Sports Complex in Little Rock, Arkansas, with kickoff slated for 4 p.m., CT.