ST. LOUIS -- Missouri State’s Grace O’Keefe headlines a list of 33 student-athletes named to the 2022 MVC All-Conference women’s soccer teams as selected by league coaches. O’Keefe, who was tabbed the 2022 MVC Player of the Year, led the Bears in scoring and to a runner-up finish in the MVC this fall as she finished in the Top 10 of every individual offensive statistic. O’Keefe is the second Missouri State student-athlete to earn the league’s Player of the Year award in women’s soccer (Samantha Aguilar, 2009).
O'Keefe was sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference in points (11) and goals (four) and ranks third in the conference in shots (37), leading all Bears in this category. She picked up game-winning scores in two decisive conference wins: vs. Evansville and at Belmont.
2022 MVC Women's Soccer All-Conference Team (PDF)
Missouri State joins three other league teams in the MVC Women’s Soccer Tournament semifinals, which begins tomorrow (Thursday, Nov. 3) with the second-seeded Bears taking on sixth-seeded UNI at 3 p.m. CT (ESPN+). The second semifinal features host and No. 1 seed Valparaiso against No. 8 seed Murray State at 6 p.m. CT (ESPN+).
Eleven MVC programs sponsor women’s soccer and all 11 had at least one student-athlete honored among the league’s three all-MVC teams or on the MVC All-Freshman unit. The top two seeds (Valparaiso and Missouri State) claimed the lion’s share of the selections on the First Team, as seven of the 11 picks were filled by Valpo (4) or Missouri State (3). Those two squads combined to earn all five of the league’s specialty award honors (Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, Freshman of the Year, and Coaching Staff of the Year).
The league’s Defensive Player of the Year hails from Missouri State, as Carly Raunig was tabbed the league’s top defender this fall. She helped anchor a Missouri State defense that pitched shutouts in seven out of its 10 conference matchups. Raunig started every match this season for MoState and played the full 90 minutes in nine matches this year. Raunig takes a majority of the throw-ins for the Bears and is also active on the offensive side of the ball, co-leading MoState in assists with three on the year. Raunig is the ninth Missouri State student-athlete to earn the league’s top defensive honor.
Hailey Chambliss, also of Missouri State, earned the MVC’s Freshman of the Year honor. Chambliss also earned selection to the league’s first-team unit (the only MVC freshman to do so). The freshman accounted for six goals in the Bears last seven regular-season contests, pushing her to second most in the MVC on the season. In four different instances, Chambliss scored all the goals for Missouri State in a win, including a two-goal performance at SIU. Chambliss started 14 out of 18 matches for the Bears and also recorded two assists on the year. She is joined by two previous MSU players to earn the league’s top freshman honor (Kate Hercules, 2003; and Samantha Aguilar, 2006).
Valpo’s Nikki Coryell earns her third consecutive Goalkeeper of the Year honor after putting together another stellar season between the posts. Coryell led the Valley in GAA (0.50) and save percentage (.881) within conference matches, surrendering just five goals over 10 fixtures and no more than one in any single match. With seven clean sheets overall this season, Coryell moved into the top-10 in MVC history in career shutouts.
Valparaiso’s coaching staff has earned the MVC’s Coaching Staff of the Year honor. In his 15th season as head coach at Valpo, John Marovich led this year’s side to the program’s fourth conference regular season championship. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Marovich has guided the Beacons up the MVC standings in each of the last four seasons, culminating with this year’s title. Alongside Marovich on the Beacons’ bench are second-year assistant coach Brianne Barnes and first-year goalkeepers coach Noah Smith.
And UNI earned the Valley’s Fair Play Award, which is structured after the FIFA Fair Play honor. It is awarded to the Valley squad(s) that have the fewest penalty cards during MVC matches.
