This week's Missouri Valley Conference women's soccer players of the week include Hailey Chambliss and Carly Raunig of Missouri State; Sarah Doyle of Belmont; and Mary Hardy of Murray State.
MVC Women's Soccer Weekly Notebook (PDF)
Offensive
Hailey Chambliss, Missouri State
Chambliss scored all three goals for the Bears last week, netting her first two collegiate goals against SIU on Thursday, propelling the Bears to a 2-1 win, and scoring the only goal of Sunday’s match versus Valparaiso, a 52nd minute game-winning goal to give MoState the edge over the Beacons, 1-0 and take sole possession of first place in the MVC. Chambliss went from having zero total goals on the season to co-leading MoState in goals and being tied for third most in the MVC in just a two-game span.
Defensive
Carly Raunig, Missouri State
Raunig was an integral part of a Missouri State defense that allowed no goals in two matches last week. Raunig failed to see the sideline all week, playing the full 90 minutes in both games and picked up an assist off Hailey Chambliss’ second goal on Thursday to give MOST the lead, 2-0, against SIU. In the match against the Salukis, Raunig also registered a shot on goal in the 60th minute.
Goalkeeper
Sarah Doyle, Belmont
Doyle posted two shutouts this week to extend her shutouts on the season to six. After this week of play Doyle ranks seventh in the nation for her .900 save percentage. Doyle posted two perfect save percentage games. This week alone Doyle posted 10 saves to her 54 total on the season.
Freshman
Mary Hardy, Murray State
Hardy powered the Racers to their first-ever MVC win in a 3-1 victory over Indiana State on September 29. The freshman midfielder scored the game-winning goal for Murray State while assisting on the Racers third and final goal. Hardy also played a big role in the Racers 1-1 draw against UIC on October 2 with two shots on goal and 65 minutes played versus the Flames.
BEL .. Two Clean Sheets
Belmont recorded two shutouts on the week in 0-0 draw against UIC and road victory 1-0 over Illinois State. The Bruins now tally four wins on the season for a .591 win percentage. The Bruins also added two shutouts to their seven total on the season. Kennedy Wise earned her first career goal as a Bruin for the game winning goal against the Redbirds.
DU ... Back in the Win Column
The Drake victory over Illinois State last Thursday broke a 10-game winless streak for the Bulldogs. It was their longest drought since 2013 (eight consecutive winless results).
UE ... Rare Air
UE fifth-year forward Emily Ormson should enter this week’s action leading NCAA Division I women’s soccer in shot accuracy, as she will carry an 80.8 percent shot accuracy mark into Thursday night’s match at UIC. Ormson led the country going into Sunday’s match against Southern Illinois, and went a perfect three-for-three in terms of shots on goal against the Salukis to raise her mark to 80.8 percent, with 21 of her 26 shots this year being on target.
UIC ... Road Results
UIC wrapped up a two-match road swing with a pair of draws, playing even with Belmont and Murray State. Their shutout of the Bruins was their second in Valley play, and third overall.
SIU ... Last-Second Victory
Southern Illinois scored in the 89th minute to defeat Evansville, 2-1, on Sunday. The late-game heroics are nothing new for the Salukis this season, as it is the second time in Valley action where they’ve scored in the final minutes to come away with a positive result. On Sept. 18, SIU scored twice in the last 10 minutes to earn a 2-2 draw vs. Drake in what was its first conference match of the season.
ILS ... Birds Fall to Belmont
The Redbirds held a convincing 15-7 lead in shots, but Belmont put on a strong defensive performance to keep Illinois State off the board in a 1-0 loss. It was the second-straight home match that Illinois State fell despite outshooting their opponent.
INS ... Bakaitis Gets Her First
Junior defender Josie Bakaitis scored her first collegiate goal on September 29 against Murray State with a header to give ISU an early 1-0 lead against the Racers.
MOST .. Bears Stay Perfect
On Thursday night at SIU, a defensive struggle had the two teams at a stalemate until late in the second half. In the 71st minute, freshman Hailey Chambliss found the back of the net to give the Bears a 1-0 lead. Chambliss scored again 13 minutes later off an assist by Carly Raunig to seal the win for MOST, 2-0. On Sunday afternoon, in a battle of MVC unbeatens, the match again proved to be a defensive struggle for the Bears. In the 52nd minute, Chambliss again found the back of the net, scoring the only goal of the match off an assist by Grace O’Keefe and propelling MoState to a victory over the Beacons, 1-0. The Bears now sit atop the MVC as the only team yet to lose a conference game.
MUR .. Super Freshman Duo;
Pair Reach Milestones
The Freshman pair of Mary Hardy and Sydney Etter have played pivotal roles for the Racers throughout the season, none more so than in the Murray State win over Indiana State. After trailing into the 77th minute, the duo flipped the game on its head with Hardy scoring in the 86th minute and Etter scoring in the 88th minute with Hardy assisting to secure the win.
And Murray State seniors Lauren Payne and Saraya linked up for a couple of milestones on the Racers goal against UIC on October 2. The goal in the seventh minute against the Flames marked Payne’s 10th career goal and Young’s fifth career assist at Murray State.
UNI .. Back-to-Back
With two ties this past week, for the first time since 2018 UNI has had two straight tie finishes. It’s also the first time since 2016 that the Panthers have tied two Missouri Valley Conference opponents in a row.
VU .. Shutout Streak Snapped
After posting clean sheets in each of their first three MVC matches of the season, Valpo saw its shutout streak come to an end as Missouri State found the back of the net on Sunday. The Beacons had kept their opponents off the scoreboard for 340 consecutive minutes before the Bears’ 52nd-minute goal.
DU ... At Last
Senior midfielder Meghan Brown scored her first career goal on Thursday against Illinois State after appearing in 59 games for Drake.
UIC ... Spreading the Wealth
Freshman Sophia Jaime scored the first goal of her career against Murray State Sunday, making her the fifth different Flame to score this year. Four additional players have at least one assist, making it nine total Flames with at least one point on the season.
UNI ... Offensive Storm
The Panthers continue to attack the net this season. UNI leads the Valley in points per game, shots on goal per game, total goals, and total points. The Panthers are also one of the top 100 teams in the nation in shots on goal per game at 77th with 6.58 shots on goal averaged.
UE ... Cardiac Kids
Evansville’s two matches this week were nail-biters, with both matches being decided in the final three minutes of play. UE scored in the 88th minute Thursday night to equalize the match and earn a 2-2 tie against UNI. Southern Illinois then scored in the 89th minute to take a 2-1 decision over Evansville at Arad McCutchan Stadium. So far this year in MVC play, the final scoreline of all five conference matches for UE has been decided in the final 12 minutes of play.
SIU ... Spotak Steps Up
Emma Spotak stepped up for the Salukis on Sunday in their 2-1 win vs. Evansville. The match was level at 1-1 entering the final two minutes after the Aces scored the equalizer earlier in the half. In the 89th minute, Spotak got past the Evansville defense and chipped the opposing goalkeeper to score the winner. The goal was Spotak’s second game-winning goal of the season, and third of her career.
INS ... Wahlberg Closing In
CeCe Wahlberg put five shot attempts on goal on October 2 against Northern Iowa to give her 87 for her career which puts her three away from becoming the all-time leader in program history.
UE .. Creating Chances
While offensive chances were limited for UE during non-conference play, that has not been in the case in league play, as UE enters this week’s action tied for second in the league in both shots (53) and shots on goal (29) in league matches. In fact, the Purple Aces have out-shot three of their last four Valley opponents, including holding an advantage in shots on goal in each of the last four matches.
MUR .. First MVC Win
Murray State took their first MVC win in a 3-1 victory over Indiana State. The win marked Murray State’s first MVC victory in any sport as new members to the league in 2022.
Top Performers
Rachel Panther, Drake -- Panther recorded assists on both of Drake’s goals in a 2-0 victory against Illinois State on Thursday
Kennedy Wise, Belmont -- Scored the game winning goal against Illinois State to secure the win for the Bruins in the ninth minute.
Emily Ormson, UE -- Last week, Ormson recorded a pair of goals and fired nine shots, including eight on goal in the two matches.
Lauren Heinsch, UNI -- Converted a penalty kick against Evansville. Along with her goal this week, Heinsch led the Panthers in shots.
Emma Spotak, SIU -- Spotak was the hero for the Salukis on Sunday against Evansville. She got past the Aces’ defense and chipped the opposing goalkeeper to give SIU a 2-1 lead in the 89th minute.
Lily Overstreet, Drake - Overstreet helped Drake notch its first clean sheet of the season in a 2-0 shutout of Illinois State. She helped limit ISU to five shots on goal and 10 total
Sam DeJulio, SIU -- DeJulio once again played a full 180 minutes for the Salukis in their two matches this past week. On Sunday vs. Evansville, DeJulio played a critical role for the Salukis in limiting Evansville to just one goal.
Brielle Gomez, UIC -- She and the Flames’ defense did not allow a goal to Belmont, and tightened up after an early Racer goal, keeping them off the board the rest of the match.
Katie Montgomery, MoState -- Montgomery came up big for the Bears in their biggest match of the season so far Sunday versus Valparaiso, making six saves.
Maddy Alaluf, SIU -- Alaluf made eight saves across two matches for the Salukis in a week where they faced MoState and Evansville.
Lauren Keiser, UIC -- Keiser allowed only one goal across UIC’s two-game road trip this week. She blanked Belmont on three saves, marking her third solo shutout of the season.
Tara Hoffman, IndState -- Hoffman entered the starting lineup for Sunday’s match and played a huge role in the Sycamores earning a point in 1-1 draw against UNI. The senior goalkeeper made a career-high nine saves.
Sydney Burskey, UNI -- Burskey was the Panthers lone goal scorer in their 1-1 draw against Indiana State on Sunday
Shae Doherty, Belmont -- Doherty recorded her season game high of shots with two against Illinois State to add to her now 11 total.
Ella Gorrie, IndState -- Picked up 3 points to add to her team-leading total with her second assist of the season vs. Murray State. She also her scored second goal of the season
Sophia Jaime, UIC -- Jaime scored the first goal of her career at the best possible time, sending an 82nd-minute shot past the keeper to pull UIC even with Murray State, 1-1.
Grace Smith, Drake -- Smith scored her first collegiate goal in the 54th minute of a 2-0 win over Illinois State.