Tournament Central

AUSTIN, Texas – The St. Edward's University women's soccer team has qualified for every Heartland Conference tournament in league history and looks to advance to its seventh-straight championship match Thursday as the No. 2-seeded Hilltoppers open the 2017 Heartland Conference Women's Soccer Championship in Dallas against the No. 3 seed, Rogers State.

Twelfth-year head coach Nick Cowell has led SEU to seven regular-season titles and three tournament championships. As he enters his seventh-straight Heartland tournament in search of a fourth championship title, Cowell points to hard work as the source of his team's success.

"Complacency isn't really in our vocabulary. We come to work hard every day," said Cowell. "We're not the type of team that can just show up and win. We have to work hard for everything we get. I'm really proud of the kids' efforts this year. Everything they've gotten so far has been because of their team chemistry and hard work."
 
The Hilltoppers had a roller coaster season as they went undefeated through the first 10 matches before going winless in four-straight contests. SEU recovered in its last four matches with four wins while outscoring its opponents 16-2 on the way to the No. 2 seed in the tournament. Senior captain KELLY ANDRUS attributes the turnaround to team unity.

"At this point, I think we're just motivated to win," said Andrus. "We went through a little bit of a rough patch, and once we moved past that we came to every practice ready to go. We all wanted to work together as a team and became more unified on and off the field. Now we're just ready to push through. We know our worth as a team and what we can bring and we're just really motivated to win."

Fellow senior captain GRACEN JACKS says the key to winning will be staying focused on the task at hand.

"Our mindset is to take it one game at a time," said Jacks. "We really want to focus on winning against Rogers State and that's our main focus. Everyone will have to come together and put in 110-percent effort. Our goal is to get the shutout and win both games."

On the other side of the ball, Rogers State enters its first Heartland Conference tournament in program history following one of the league's best turnarounds. After winning just two Heartland matches in 2016, the Hillcats racked up nine conference wins this season on their way to the No. 3 seed.

"Rogers State has done a fantastic job of becoming a team to be reckoned with," said Cowell. "Coach (Scott) Parkinson has done a great job of bringing that team up to speed. I expect them to be even better in years to come. We're excited for the matchup and I think they're excited to play us."

If the regular season is any indication, fans are in for an intense weekend of soccer. The Hilltoppers defeated all three tournament teams at home by a combined score of 5-0 before falling to Rogers State and Dallas Baptist on the road. A win Thursday would mark SEU's sixth victory over RSU in program history and put St. Edward's in its seventh-straight Heartland Championship game.

Thursday's semifinal match between the Hilltoppers and Hillcats will be played at 4 p.m. at Patriot Soccer Field on the campus of Dallas Baptist University. The second semifinal between Dallas Baptist and Newman will follow at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at GoHilltoppers.com.  
Regular-Season Champions: 2016, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2010, 2006, 2004
Tournament Champions: 2014, 2013, 2011, 2004
Overall Tournament Record: 36-16

Tournament Results:

Year	Finish
1999	No Tournament Held
2000	Semifinal Loss
2001	Semifinal Loss
2002	Semifinal Loss
2003	Runner-Up
2004	Champion
2005	Semifinal Loss
2006	No Tournament Held
2007	No Tournament Held
2008	No Tournament Held
2009	No Tournament Held
2010	No Tournament Held
2011	Champion
2012	Runner-Up
2013	Champion
2014	Champion
2015	Runner-Up
2016	Runner-Up

Active All-Tournament Team:
Whytneigh Duffe: 2014

St. Edward's vs. Rogers State
All-Time Record: SEU Leads, 5-1-1
Tournament Record: Tied, 0-0-0

Follow St. Edward's Women's Soccer all season long on Twitter and Instagram using the handle @SEUWSoccer.