USI Women’s Soccer predicted a fourth-place finish by GLVC poll

0

The University of Southern Indiana women’s soccer team is picked finish fourth in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in a vote by the league’s 15 head coaches. USI, which claimed its first GLVC Tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 1998 in 2019, while posting a 12-7-2 overall record and an 8-6-1 GLVC mark in the regular season.

The 15-team GLVC will have a round robin schedule that features every team playing seven home and seven away games. The regular season champion, along with the next seven best teams based on conference winning percentage, will earn a berth to the eight-team GLVC Women’s Soccer Championship Tournament.

The top four seeds will host on campus April 19 with the winners advancing to St Charles, Missouri, for the semifinals and finals on April 23 and 25.

Rockhurst collected 182 total points for the top spot in the GLVC Women’s Soccer preseason poll and lost in the semifinals of the 2019 NCAA II Tournament. USI upset the Hawks in the second round of the 2019 GLVC Tournament prior to their NCAA II Tournament appearance where they fell to the eventually national champion, Grand Valley State University, 7-1.

The 2020-21 USI squad is comprised of 30 players – 20 returning players and redshirts and 10 newcomers. The Eagles also have seven seniors this spring.

The top returning scorer for USI is senior forward Katlyn Andres, who was named second-team All-GLVC after leading the Eagles with 21 points on eight goals and five assists in 2019.

Second on the team in scoring was senior forward Maggie Winter with 16 points on seven goals and two assists back in the fall of 2019.

USI opens the 2020-21 season at home, playing host to University of Indianapolis February 28. The first road contest of 2020-21 is March 5 when the Eagles travel to Romeoville to take on Lewis University.

2020-21 GLVC Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches’ Poll
Place School Points (1st-place votes)
1 Rockhurst 182 (7)
2 McKendree 174 (4)
3 UIndy 171 (3)
4 Southern Indiana 152
5 Truman 149
6 Maryville 140 (1)
7 Lewis 121
8 Lindenwood 99
9 Illinois Springfield 90
10 Quincy 83
11 Missouri S&T 59
12 Missouri-St. Louis 57
13 Drury 41
14 William Jewell 34
15 Southwest Baptist 23