Ohio Valley Conference

Day two of the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference Women's Soccer Championship features second round matches on campus sites on Sunday.

Second round games are played on the campus sites of the No. 3 (Lindenwood) and No. 4 (Southern Indiana) seeds.

Lindenwood will face No. 7 Southeast Missouri who defeated No. 6 Eastern Illinois, 2-0, on Thursday evening. Southern Indiana will take on No. 5 Morehead State, winners of a 1-0 contest against No. 8 UT Martin.

The winners of the quarterfinal matches will advanced to next weekend's action which will take place on the campus of No. 1 seed Tennessee Tech.

Fans can watch the entire 2024 OVC Women's Soccer Championship on ESPN+.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Graduate student defender Anna Lohrer and sophomore forward Hedda Ornberg each scored, and senior forward/midfielder Erin Fite had a pair of assists as the Morehead State women's soccer team took its second step toward defending its Ohio Valley Conference Tournament crown with a 2-1 win over Southern Indiana on Sunday afternoon at Strassweg Field in Evansville.

Lohrer scored the game winner, Ornberg moved into a tie for seventh in single-season goals and Fite stepped into eighth on the career assist list as the fifth-seeded Eagles avenged a 1-0 regular-season loss to the fourth-seeded Screaming Eagles in the tournament's second round.

MSU coach Paul Cox did not mince his words in describing the game.

It was the first time in nine games (and fifth time overall that) the Eagles scored multiple goals this season. The Blue and Gold needed it, because it fell behind 1-0 three minutes and 46 seconds into the contest.

The victory gave Morehead State (9-6-5/4-3-2) a 7-3-3 mark this season away from home, which equals the school record for road wins. It also extended both the team's unbeaten streak and road unbeaten streak to five games.

The result also matched the 2023 OVC tournament championship club in total wins at nine, extended its OVC Tournament win streak to four, improved its overall tournament record to 16-12-2 and its mark as the No. 5 seed to 5-4. It also raised its record in OVC Tournament second-round games to 6-4-2, was the second straight year and sixth time overall the club has won at least twice in the tournament, and secured its 12th berth to the semifinals.

Southern Indiana (5-9-5/4-2-3) got on the board quickly, scoring at the 3:46 mark after a defensive breakdown when Eva Boer stole an apparent back pass and beat freshman goalkeeper Lilly Balley to the ball, sliding it past her from 18 yards out for the goal. Peyton Murphy was credited with an assist on the play.

MSU dominated the action in the first half, with more shots (8-5, including 5-2 on goal) and corners (5-1). USI led in saves (5-1) and fouls (8-6). Both teams were flagged for being offside once. USI's goal scorer Eva Boer received the lone yellow card. The Eagles held possession of the ball for 57 percent of the half and had the ball in the Screaming Eagle defensive zone for 60 percent of that time.

Ornberg became the first Eagle to score in four consecutive games since Macy Cobb tallied one in each of the final four matches of the 2014 campaign, when she notched the game-tying goal with 35:32 left in the contest off a Fite assist. Ornberg's shot came from 23 yards out in the center of the field, going over the head of USI goalkeeper Anna Markland and under the crossbar. It was her ninth goal of the season and Fite's ninth career assist.

USI's Emerson Grafton had an opportunity to score on a breakaway but was caught from behind by junior defender Gracen Houck with 33:37 to play.

Southern Indiana appeared to take a lead after Boer scored with 12 minutes remaining, but the goal was waved off after an offside call.

Freshman forward Carlie Thurmond had a pair of breakaway chances. With 1:18 left in the first half, she went down in the box, but a foul was whistled on Thurmond, nullifying that opportunity. With 8:42 remaining in the game, she got off a shot that was saved by Markland, but it resulted in a corner kick.

Lohrer tallied the game-winning goal after she headed in a Fite corner kick from the right side with 2:26 to play. Lohrer was six yards out on the left side and her header went across the box past a diving Markland before going in the net.

Southern Indiana's Josie Pochocki got off one last quality shot from 12 yards out that went high and wide with 10 seconds left.

Morehead State led in four categories: shots (15 to 10), shots on goal (nine to five), corner kicks (11 to two) and fouls (11 to 10). The corner kick total was a season high by three, ironically originally set against Southern Indiana.

The Screaming Eagles held the edge in offside calls (six to one) and saves (seven to four). Both teams were assessed one yellow card.

MSU held possession of the ball for 57 percent of the afternoon and was on the attack in the USI zone for 64 percent of that time.

Ornberg and Lohrer had three shots apiece to pace the Blue and Gold. Fite and junior midfielder Kamryn Baquero each added two. Boer and Emerson Grafton topped the hosts with three shots apiece.

Bailey, who made four saves, improved to 6-4-4 with the win. Markland was credited with seven.

Despite allowing a goal, the Eagles continue to chase the single-season record for fewest in a season of 21, which they set in 2022.

Southern Indiana saw its four-game unbeaten streak come to an end. It also fell to 4-4-2 at home this season and ended a two-game win streak. It was the third straight year the Screaming Eagles lost their opening round contest, the last two as a higher seed. They are 0-3 all-time in the OVC Tournament.

The Eagles' win tied the all-time series at 2-2.

#3 LINDENWOOD 4, #7 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - On Sunday, women's soccer (8-5-4, 4-1-4 OVC) took on SEMO (3-11-3, 2-4-3 OVC) in the quarterfinals of the OVC Tournament. The Lions would dominate in the match, winning 4-0 over the Redhawks. With the win over SEMO, Lindenwood advances to the semifinals of the OVC Tournament, and improves to 9-5-4 in the 2024 season. 
 
The Lions would get things rolling, quickly and in a hurry, at the start of the first half. In the second minute of the match, Anna Johnson would finesse a shot pass the goalkeeper, into the bottom-left corner, to give the Lions the early 1-0 lead. Johnson's goal would be assisted by Mackenzie Compton. Not more than 50 seconds later, Johnson would chip a through pass to Compton, with Compton making a move and finishing it into the top-left corner, giving the Lions a two-goal lead just three minutes into the match. The Lions were not done scoring in the first half, with Compton tapping her second goal home in the 15th minute. Compton's second goal would be assisted by Jessica Dodd and Allison Schrumpf. Strong defense by Lindenwood would hold SEMO scoreless in the first frame, resulting in the Lions leading 3-0 after a half of play. In the half, the Lions outshot the Redhawks 9-4. Caroline Ritter would make two stops in the half.
 
Lindenwood would notch the only goal in the second half, coming in the latter part of the 75th minute. Lindenwood's fourth goal would be scored by Maddy Vasiloff, after striking a shot into the back of the net. Vasiloff's first career goal as a Lion would be assisted by Peyton Hatfield and Georgia Pardalos. The Lions would hold the Redhawks scoreless in the second, resulting in Lindenwood's ninth shutout in the 2024 campaign. Lindenwood outshot SEMO 11-7 in the half. Ritter would make two saves in the final half, for four total saves on the night.