CEDAR FALLS – For the second time in 10 days, UNI soccer is set to square off against the Valparaiso Beacons. This time, though, the matchup comes with significantly higher stakes as a place in the 2023 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Tournament semifinal round is on the line. Sunday’s quarterfinal match between No. 3 seed UNI and No. 6 seed Valparaiso will mark the first-ever postseason match held at UNI Soccer Field.
Sunday’s match will be a ticketed event with general admission tickets available for $10 on the UNITIX website and at UNI’s ticket office, which will be open in the hours leading up to kickoff on Sunday. UNI students can enter Sunday’s match for free by presenting their UNI student ID at one of the ticket gates. Additionally, public parking on-site will only be available on the west lot closest to the UNI-Dome and the west lot closest to the McLeod Center. Additional parking information can be found here.
Sunday’s match will mark the eighth time UNI has hosted an MVC Tournament match, but the prior seven contests were held off-campus. Including Sunday’s match, all eight postseason matches UNI soccer has hosted have been quarterfinal matches. The Panthers’ lone home MVC Tournament win came in 2017 when UNI beat Illinois State 1-0.
UNI will look to improve its home postseason record on Sunday while capping what has been a historic season at UNI Soccer Field. Last Sunday, the Panthers closed the 2023 regular season with a dominant 8-1 home victory over Illinois State. The win improved the Panthers to 10-0-0 at home during the 2023 regular season and secured the first unbeaten home season in UNI Soccer history.
As for the match itself, the Panthers picked a perfect time to snap a two-match scoreless streak with an offensive onslaught against the Redbirds. Three Panthers scored their first goal of the 2023 season in the victory including Olivia Bohl and Jaylie Hicklin, who scored their first collegiate goals in the win. Olivia Knoepfle upped her 2023 point total to 24 points after scoring twice and recording an assist against Illinois State. Not only does Knoepfle enter postseason play with the most total points in the MVC, she is also tied with Brynell Yount (2017) for the most points in a single season in UNI soccer history.
Lauren Heinsch scored the 20th goal of her Panther soccer career in UNI’s regular season finale, becoming just the fourth player in program history to reach the 20-goal threshold. Heinsch enters the postseason tied with Shanon Dechant (2002-05) and Yount (2015-18) for second place on UNI soccer’s career scoring list. Ashley Harrington, Macy Smith and Sydney Burskey rounded out the scoring for the Panthers in last Sunday’s contest.
Last Sunday’s offensive explosion capped a historic regular season for UNI offensively. The Panthers finished the regular season with 46 goals, 36 assists and 126 points, all of which are UNI soccer records for a single season. Eight goals in a single match marked UNI’s highest total against an MVC opponent and the third-highest total for a single game in program history.
The Panthers finished the regular season with 13 wins and currently sit one win away from matching a Panther soccer record for wins in a season. Thanks to last Sunday’s victory, UNI ended the regular season in third place in the final MVC standings, which is tied for the best finish in program history.
UNI did not find out its first postseason opponent until Thursday afternoon after Valparasio took down Belmont 1-0 in an opening round MVC Tournament match at UNI Soccer Field. Lindsey DuSatko headed home a corner kick in the eighth minute on an assist from Kelsie James, and that goal held up as the lone goal of the contest. The Bruins had nine shots and five shots on goal, but Beacon goalkeeper Nikki Coryell made big stops when needed and Valparaiso prevailed from the tightly-contested affair with a one-goal victory.
The Panthers’ matchup against Valparaiso provides UNI a chance to exact revenge on the Beacons. Valparaiso beat UNI 2-0 in the sides’ aforementioned matchup on Oct. 16. Set pieces were the story of that match as well, as the Beacons scored on corner kicks in the 52nd and 69th minute to prevail victorious. The Panthers forced four saves from Coryell but could not find the back of the net. Caitlin Richards made six stops in the contest.
Valparaiso finished the regular season with a 7-5-6 record. The Beacons posted an impressive seven-match unbeaten streak that lasted from Sept. 8 through Oct. 5, but have since alternated wins and losses starting with a 2-1 defeat against Drake on Oct. 8. Valparaiso has not won consecutive matches since its first two games of the regular season. Beacon forward Addy Joiner enters Sunday’s match with a team-high eight goals and 17 points.
With a win on Sunday, the Panthers could return to the MVC semifinals for the second consecutive year. Last season, the Panthers finished the regular season at the No. 6 seed before taking down No. 7 Belmont and No. 3 UIC to advance to the semifinal round. No. 2 seed Missouri State ultimately beat the Panthers 2-1 in last year’s semifinals and, coincidentally, the Bears await the winner of Sunday’s match between UNI and Valparaiso.
