<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2QIYFh_0wEVwIo800" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2QIYFh_0wEVwIo800" width="1920" height="1080" ></figure>MOREHEAD – In the Morehead State soccer team's final road game of the season, the Eagles will face Southeast Missouri on Sunday with a bid to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on the line. The two teams will square off at Houck Field in Cape Girardeau, Mo., at 2 p.m. ET. It will be SEMO's Senior Day.After Thursday's games, MSU sits in sixth place, one point out of a tie for fourth and three points away from third. Wins by Eastern Illinois and Southern Indiana pushed the two sides ahead of the Blue and Gold. A win on Sunday will secure the Eagles a berth in the OVC Tournament.Despite 1-9-3 and 1-3-3 records, the Redhawks are one of the hottest teams in the conference and MSU head coach Paul Cox is aware of the challenge ahead for the Blue and Gold."They're unbeaten in three games against good OVC sides and we are playing them during their hottest streak of the season at the end of the season. So, we know we are going to have a tough game on our hands," he said. "We've had a good trip and we will be looking to top it off with three points."Morehead State (6-6-4/3-3-1) bounced back from a recent series of struggles with a 1-1 tie at league leader Lindenwood on Thursday. It was the first time an OVC foe scored on the Lions this fall.The Eagles improved to 4-3-3 on the road and now own a two-game unbeaten streak. It is the third such run this year. A win on Sunday will equal the best record for a stretch of away contests at 2-0-1.Prior to the LU match, the Blue and Gold dropped a 1-0 home contest against Southern Indiana last Sunday but won a 1-0 road decision at UT Martin the previous Sunday.Morehead State remains on track to allow the fewest goals in a season in school history. With two regular-season games to play, the team has surrendered just 18. The all-time low mark is 21, set in 2022. The same is true for lowest goals against average. The current mark is 1.06. The record is 1.15, also from two years ago.Offensively, the squad has posted nine consecutive outings with at least 10 shots.The Blue and Gold is averaging 1.13 goals per game and 12.8 shots per game, 4.0 corner kicks per game, 8.88 fouls per game, 2.38 offside violations per game and 4.25 saves per game. Its' opponents sport averages of 1.06 gpg, 12.9 shots per game, 4.25 ckpg, 8.19 fpg, 2.94 offside violations per game and 4.38 saves per game.Individually, sophomore forward Hedda Ornberg continues to top the squad with five goals, two assists, 12 points and 33 shots. Freshmen forwards Ava Peck and Carlie Thurmond follow with three goals, two assists and eight points apiece. Peck has taken 18 shots to 16 for Thurmond. Junior midfielder Kennedy Baquero has contributed three goals, one assist, seven points and 31 shots.Freshman goalkeeper Lilly Bailey has a 1.13 gaa, 43 saves, a team-best .796 save percentage, a 3-4-3 record and two shutouts.Southeast Missouri has a three-game unbeaten streak, with a 2-1 home win on Thursday over SIUE and a pair of 0-0 ties, including at Little Rock last Sunday and at home against Lindenwood on Sunday, Oct. 6.The Redhawks have a 1-4-2 home mark, with their only win coming against SIUE three days ago.They are averaging 0.46 gpg, 7.2 shots per game, 2.23 ckpg, 10.69 fpg, 0.69 offside violations per game and 3.69 saves per game. Their opponents' own averages of 2.08 gpg, 12.7 shots per game, 7.0 ckpg, 9.31 fpg and 3.62 saves per game.The Redhawks have only scored six times this season. Sophomore forward/midfielder Emily Baker leads the way with two goals, one assist, five points and 11 shots. Junior forward Cayla Koerner, senior midfielder Elizabeth Rater and freshman forward Alli Saviano each add one goal, one assist and three points. Koerner tops the squad with 30 shots and 20 attempts on frame. Sophomore midfielder Justi Nelson is second in shots with 12, Rater and junior midfielder/forward Zoe Houston each have nine to sit third.Junior goalkeeper Sophia Elfrink has started 12 games and owns a 1-7-3 record, a 2.00 gaa, 23 saves, a .629 save percentage and two shutouts. Elfrink is the reigning OVC Goalkeeper of the Week.SEMO sophomore defender Sophie Shrum is the OVC Defensive Player of the Week.Eighteen Redhawk players have seen time in the field this season. Rater, junior defender Alayna Jakul, Nelson and sophomore defender Kristin Anderson are the only ones to start all 13 games.Coach Heather Nelson is the only coach the program has had since it began in 1999. She has a career record of 227-160-66 and has guided the team to six regular-season titles and two OVC Tournament crowns.SEMO leads the all-time series 16-8-7. However, MSU won both meetings 1-0 in 2023, including at home in October and in the OVC Tournament semifinals at Tennessee Tech. The Eagles are riding a 2-0-1 advantage over the past two seasons, with a 1-1 tie in October 2022, the last time the two faced in Cape Girardeau.The Redhawks own a 7-2-1 record versus Morehead State at home. The last Southeast Missouri win (1-0) came in the opening round of the 2021 OVC Tournament. Earlier that fall, the squads tied 0-0 in double overtime in Morehead.SEMO won seven of the first eight meetings between the two. The Eagles last outright win in Cape Girardeau came on Nov. 4, 2011 (3-2). MSU's longest unbeaten stretch in the series came from 2008-11, when the Blue and Gold went 3-0-2.ESPN+ will broadcast the game at https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/a795b12a-315f-46f2-9bb8-ace1841f0dec. Statistics from the contest can also be followed in real time online at https://shorturl.at/LHjyG.Morehead State's final regular-season match will be next Sunday, when the Eagles host SIUE on Senior Day at 1 p.m. MSU will honor graduate student defenders Anna Lohrer and Maddie Feldhaus, graduate student goalkeeper Reegan Garrity, and senior forward Erin Fite.</div></body>

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Win and In: Soccer to Face SEMO for OVC Tournament Berth

MOREHEAD – In the Morehead State soccer team's final road game of the season, the Eagles will face Southeast Missouri on Sunday with a bid to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on the line. The two teams will square off at Houck Field in Cape Girardeau, Mo., at 2 p.m. ET. It will be SEMO's Senior Day.