UPCOMING SCHEDULE
TUESDAY, AUGUST 21
Eastern Kentucky at East Tennessee State - 5 p.m.
Missouri State at
Southeast Missouri - 6:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 23
Morehead State at Kentucky - 6:30 p.m.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 24
Ball State at
Eastern Kentucky - 3 p.m.
IUPUI at
Murray State - 3 p.m.
UT Martin at Marshall - 3 p.m.
Alabama A&M at
Austin Peay - 5 p.m.
Jacksonville State at Georgia Southern - 6 p.m.
Illinois-Springfield at
Southeast Missouri - 6:30 p.m.
Eastern Illinois at Milwaukee - 7 p.m.
Indiana State at
SIUE - 7 p.m.
East Tennessee State at
Tennessee Tech - 7 p.m.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 26
Belmont at Western Carolina - 12 p.m.
IUPUI at
Eastern Kentucky - 12 p.m.
Jacksonville State at Georgia State - 12 p.m.
Eastern Illinois at Green Bay - 1 p.m.
Ball State at
Morehead State - 1 p.m.
SIUE at Saint Louis - 2 p.m.
Jackson State at
UT Martin - 2 p.m.
Murray State at Ole Miss - 6 p.m.
North Alabama at
Tennessee Tech - 6 p.m.
* - OVC Game
ALL TIMES CENTRAL
OVC Players of the Week- Aug. 21
Co-Offensive
Claire Petersen, F, 5-3, Sr., Herman, Maine - Jacksonville State
Petersen led Jacksonville State to its first 2-0 start in the program’s history with two goals and an assist. She had two of the seven goals in the win over Jackson State. She also had an assist in the season-opening win over ULM.
Abby Jones, F, 5-5, Fr., Powell, Ohio - Murray State
Jones recorded the game-winning goal in the season-opening victory over Western Kentucky. She assisted on both the Racers’ goals in its win over NKU.
Others Nominated: Julie Garst, Belmont; Erin Torrence, Eastern Kentucky; Colleen Swift, Morehead State; Andrea Frerker, SIUE; Esmie Gonzales, Southeast Missouri; Kendall Powell, Tennessee Tech
Defensive
Jennifer Smith, Center Back, Sr., 5-6, Caledon, Ontario, Canada - Austin Peay
Smith played all but seven minutes in the opening two matches. She was part of a defense that recorded back-to-back shutouts. She also scored the game-winning goal in the victory over Middle Tennessee.
Others Nominated: Lindsey Carlson, Eastern Illinois; Katie Shaffer, Eastern Kentucky; Danelle Lindo, Jacksonville State; Nicole Palmer, Morehead State; Izzy Heckman, Murray State
Goalkeeper
Mary Parker Powell, GK, 5-8, Jr., Germantown, Tenn. - Austin Peay
Powell played 180 minutes over the two matches last week. She made six saves en route to recording back-to-back shuouts to kick off the 2018 season.
Others Nominated: Sara Teteak, Eastern Illinois; Morgan Lerch, Jacksonville State; Eva Helgadottir, Morehead State; Alex Steigerwald, Murray State; Jensen Schoch, SIUE; Kari Naerdemann, Tennessee Tech
2018 OVC Women’s Soccer Team News
AUSTIN PEAY (2-0-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Austin Peay opened the 2018 season with a pair of shutouts last week. The Governors defeated Middle Tennessee, 1-0, at home and then went on the road to beat Evansville, 2-0. They also marked the first two wins under new head coach Naomi Kolarova. Senior center back Jennifer Smith played all but seven minutes of the two matches. She was part of the defense that didn’t allow a goal. She also notched game-winning score versus MTSU. Junior goalkeeper Mary Parker Powell played every minute of the two matches last week and made six saves in her back-to-back shutouts. Austin Peay will be back in action on Friday when it hosts Alabama A&M.
BELMONT (0-2-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Belmont dropped a pair of matches to open up the 2018 season last week. The Bruins fell to Lipscomb at home and to Middle Tennessee on the road. Sophomore Julie Garst scored a goal in each match. She scored 2:24 into the Bruins’ match with MTSU which marked the seventh quickest goal to start a game in program history. Belmont will travel to Western Carolina on Sunday.
EASTERN ILLINOIS (0-0-1 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Eastern Illinois played to a scoreless draw with Valparaiso to kick off the 2018 season. Junior defender Lindsey Carlson played all 110 minutes of the match and led a defense that did not allow a score. Junior goalkeeper Sara Teteak made six saves, all in the second half, to secure her eighth career shutout. Eastern Illinois will travel to Milwaukee on Friday and Green Bay on Sunday.
EASTERN KENTUCKY (0-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Eastern Kentucky fell at Cincinnati, 2-1, in its first game of the 2018 season. Junior forward Erin Torrence scored a goal just nine minutes into the season opener. Sophomore defender Katie Shaffer played all 90 minutes and provided the assists on Torrence’s score. Eastern Kentucky will travel to East Tennessee State on Tuesday, host Ball State on Friday and IUPUI on Sunday.
JACKSONVILLE STATE (2-0-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Jacksonville State opened the 2018 campaign with a pair of wins as the Gamecocks defeated ULM, 2-1, at home and shutout Jackson State, 7-0, on the road. Senior forward Claire Petersen scored a pair of goals in the win over Jackson State and provided an assist in the opening win against ULM. Junior defender Danelle Lindo had an assist in the season-opener and was part of a defense that gave up just one goal over the two matches. Freshman goalkeeper Morgan Lerch made her collegiate debut and posted a pair of wins over the weekend. She made two saves and had one shutout in 180 minutes of work. The Gamecocks will travel to Georgia Southern on Friday and Georgia State on Sunday.
MOREHEAD STATE (1-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Morehead State opened the 2018 season on the road, defeating Akron, 2-1, and falling to Pitt, 1-0. The win over Akron marked the first time the Eagles have opened the season with a victory since 2014. Freshman Collen Swift netted the game-winning goal against the Zips. Freshman defender Nicole Palmer played 193 minutes last week and was part of a defense that allowed just one goal in each match. She also took on shot in each match. Sophomore goalkeeper Eva Helgadottir made 16 stops and give up just two scores in 192:26 minutes of action. Morehead State will travel to Kentucky on Thursday and host Ball State on Sunday.
MURRAY STATE (2-0-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Murray State opened up the 2018 season with a pair of wins over Western Kentucky (1-0) and Northern Kentucky (2-1).It also marked the first two wins under new head coach Matt Lodge. Freshman Abby Jones scored the game-winning goal versus WKU and provided both assists against NKU. Sophomore midfielder Izzy Heckman played 175 minutes over the two matches and was part of a defense that gave up just one goal. Senior goalkeeper Alex Steigerwald recorded her 22nd career shutout in the win over WKU. She is now just four shy of breaking the school shutout record. She made eight saves over 181:43 minutes of action. Murray State will host IUPUI on Friday before traveling to Ole Miss on Sunday.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI (0-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Southeast Missouri fell to Evansville, 2-1, to open up the 2018 season. Junior Esmie Gonzales scored the lone goal for the Redhawks. She had three shots in the game. Southeast Missouri will host Missouri State on Tuesday and Illinois-Springfield on Friday.
SIUE (0-1-0 overall. 0-0-0 OVC): SIUE fell at Kentucky, 2-1, in its season opener last week. Sophomore Andrea Frerker scored the Cougars lone goal of the game. She finished the match with two shots. Sophomore goalkeeper Jensen Schoch made 10 saves in the match. SIUE will host Indiana State on Friday and travel to Saint Louis on Sunday.
TENNESSEE TECH (1-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): Tennessee Tech defeated Georgia State, 1-0, before falling to Lipscomb, 2-1, last week. Sophomore Kendall Powell scored the game-winning goal in the Georgia State match. it was her fifth game-winning goal of her career. Senior Kari Naerdemann set a new school and conference mark with her 29th career shutouts in the win over Georgia State. It also marked her 29th career win which set a new Tech mark. She made eight saves and gave up two goals over 180 minutes last week. The Golden Eagles will host East Tennessee State on Friday and North Alabama on Sunday.
UT MARTIN (0-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 OVC): UT Martin fell to Arkansas State, 2-0, to open up the 2018 season. Senior Danoe Kaldaridou led the team with four shots. The Skyhawks will travel to Marshall on Friday and host Jackson State on Sunday.
OVC News and Notes
2018 OVC Soccer Championship: This marks the second year of the expanded Ohio Valley Conference Soccer Championship field. With eight teams vying for the title, the first rounds and quarterfinals will take place Oct. 26 and 28 at campus of the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds. The semifinals and championship will be on the campus of the No. 1 seed on Nov. 2 and 4.
Record Breaking: In the first game of the 2018 season, Kari Naerdemann set a new Conference career mark as she notched her 29th career shutout at Georgia State.