EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women’s soccer team will continue its Missouri Valley Conference slate this week at Missouri State, as the Purple Aces will take on the Bears Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. on Plaster Field in Springfield, Mo.
 
The Aces (2-6-2, 1-0-0 MVC) opened Valley play last Sunday with an impressive 4-1 win over MVC preseason favorite Illinois State.  Freshman Abby Springer earned MVC Offensive Player of the Week honors for her effort against the Redbirds, netting three goals in the victory to become the first UE player to accomplish the feat since 2008.  Junior Stephanie Thompson racked up four points in the win, scoring a goal and assisting on two of Springer’s three tallies. 
 
The Evansville defense was just as impressive, as it allowed just one goal to the Valley’s top offensive team and sophomore Taylor Brand was named the MVC Defensive Player of the Week after holding reigning MVC Player of the Year Rachel Tejada to just two shots and none on goal. 
 
On the season, Springer leads the Aces offensively with nine points on four goals and an assist.  Thompson is second on the squad with six points and Kayla Smith has recorded five points, scoring twice and assisting on a goal.  In goal, Simone Busby has taken over the starting role and gone 1-0-2 in her four starts this season.  The freshman goalkeeper has posted a league-best 0.48 goals against average and .909 save percentage to go along with 20 saves.
 
Missouri State (6-6-1, 0-1-0 MVC) enters Sunday’s match having won three of its last four matches, including a pair of home shutouts against Western Illinois and North Dakota State.  However, the Bears’ loss came in their conference opener at Drake, as MSU suffered a 3-0 setback to the Bulldogs.  As a team, Missouri State leads the Valley with five shutouts, is second with a 1.27 goals against average and ranks third with 18 total goals and a 1.38 goals per game average.
 
Michelle Sommer and Rachel Weimer lead the MSU offense with nine points, as each has scored four goals and been credited with an assist. Molly Brewer has added eight points on two goals and a team-high four assists, and Shelby Stewart has tallied seven points with a trio of goals and an assist.  In goal, Chelsea Voet has logged all 1201 minutes for the Bears and boasts an impressive 1.27 goals against average with 54saves and a league-leading five shutouts.
 
Following Sunday’s tilt with MSU, the Aces will be back on the road, as they will travel to Drake for a1 p.m. match Oct. 7 in Des Moines, Iowa, before returning home for a pair of conference games with Northern Iowa (Oct. 13) and Indiana State (Oct. 17).