EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE women's soccer learned it has captured the No. 3 seed to the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Championships that begins next week.

SIUE has a bye in the opening round of the tournament. The Cougars will play next Sunday (time TBA) against the winner of the No. 6 Eastern Illinois vs. No. 7 Southeast Missouri contests that is to be played Friday at Korte Stadium.

The Cougars, 5-6-5 overall and 3-2-4 in the OVC, dropped the regular season finale Sunday at Korte Stadium to Morehead State 2-0 on SIUE's Senior Day. Sarah Magnoni, Mary Wessel, Taylor Spiller and Jay Viola were honored in a pregame ceremony.

"All four have been unbelievable," said SIUE Head Coach Derek Burton. "They have been parts of the reason why we have won the last three championships."

On Sunday, SIUE collected 10 shots and had numerous dangerous opportunities in the front of the goal but were unable to convert.

"There are always ebbs and flows in a game," Burton said. "We were really pushing, especially in the second half."

Morehead State, 7-5-5 and 6-1-2 in the OVC, recorded six shots total and used a pair of goals by Kate Larbes to push past the Cougars. Larbes tapped in from five yards out on a pass from Nicole Fiantaco at 24:08. A second-half foul in the box resulted in a converted penalty kick for Larbes at 80:03.


2023 OVC Women's Soccer Championship Schedule
Friday, October 27
Match 1 - #5 UT Martin vs. #8 Little Rock, TBD (ESPN+) (at Evansville, Ind.)
Match 2 - #6 Eastern Illinois vs. #7 Southeast Missouri, TBD (ESPN+) (at Edwardsville, Ill.)
 
Sunday, October 29
Match 3 - Winner Match 1 at #4 Southern Indiana, TBD (ESPN+)
Match 4 - Winner Match 2 at #3 SIUE, TBD (ESPN+)
 
Thursday, November 2
Match 5 - Match 3 winner at #1 Tennessee Tech, TBD (ESPN+)
Match 6 - Winner Match 4 vs. #2 Morehead State, TBD (ESPN+) (Cookeville, Tenn.)

Sunday, November 5
Match 7 - Semifinal Winners, TBD (ESPN+) (Cookeville, Tenn.)