LAKE CHARLES – Southeastern Louisiana outscored top seed Stephen F. Austin, 3-1, on penalty kicks in the Southland Conference Tournament championship match Sunday afternoon at Cowgirl Field on the McNeese State campus.
Southeastern (14-3-5) will be making its second NCAA Tournament appearance after eliminating Stephen F. Austin (16-3-3). The Lady Lions found out their destination Monday at 3:30 p.m. inside the Victory Club of Strawberry Stadium, they will be heading to the University of Nebraska for the tournament.
After the teams battled to scoreless tie after regulation and two overtime periods, the match was decided on penalty kicks. Southeastern freshman goalkeeper Hope Sabadash turned away three consecutive SFA tries, while junior Jen Babcock, senior Kelsey Salcido and freshman Lauren Lorentz each connected to give Southeastern the victory.
“We kept battling today against a very tough Stephen F. Austin team,” Southeastern head coach Blake Hornbuckle said. “I’m so proud of the effort of our team and look forward to representing our university once again in the NCAA Tournament.”
Sabadash was the hero for the Lady Lions, earning Tournament MVP honors after coming up big in penalty kick sessions on both Friday and Sunday. Sabadash was joined on the Southland Conference All-Tournament team by teammates Salcido, Kayla Vera, Brianna Singh and Casey Peacock
“I was just trying to focus and come through for my team,” Sabadash commented. “I can’t put into words how great it is to be part of this team and to be able to go to the NCAA Tournament.”
“Hope was awesome today for us,” Hornbuckle commented. “The first time I saw her play when I was recruiting her and we are fortunate to have a player of her caliber as part of our program. Hope deserves a lot of credit for the poise she showed, but our entire team shares in this and I’m so proud of this group.”
Neither team could find the net in the first half. Sabadash made two nice saves on shots by Chelsea Raymond and Brenda Salazar. SFA goalkeeper Morgan Glick was able to turn away shots by Southeastern sophomore Casey Peacock, senior Chelsea Villaescusa and freshman Amber Lasher.
Both teams continued to put the pressure on in an evenly-played second half. Both defenses and goalkeepers had to hold strong against the talented offenses to force overtime.
Sabadash made a fantastic save in the first minute of overtime to keep the match alive. Salcido and sophomore Cheyenne Maxwell were turned away by SFA keeper Lacey Lee as the first overtime ended scoreless. Neither team seriously threatened in the second overtime setting up the penalty kick session.