Redhawks start on right foot, top UALR

~ Sophomore McGrath scored her first goal in Southeast's 1-0 victory.

The first goal of Megan McGrath's Southeast Missouri State soccer career allowed the Redhawks to capture their season opener.

McGrath headed home a free kick from Caitlin Huber about 9 minutes into the second half Friday night and Southeast held off visiting Arkansas-Little Rock 1-0.

Evansville joined the Redhawks as winners on the opening day of the Southeast Invitational at Houck Stadium. The Aces eased past Austin Peay 4-2.

Although no official champion will be crowned since the pairings of the four-team event were predetermined, the winner of Sunday's 6 p.m. match between Southeast and Evansville will garner the unofficial title.

Arkansas-Little Rock and Austin Peay square off at 2 p.m. Sunday.

"I guess it's good the way it worked out, so we'll at least have an unofficial champion," Southeast coach Heather Nelson said.

In a contest that was fairly even throughout -- Southeast and UALR wound up with eight shots apiece, along with five corner kicks by each squad -- McGrath's goal proved decisive.

Huber, one of only two Southeast seniors, lofted the free kick from about 25 yards out. It drifted almost perfectly to McGrath, who was stationed near the left post. The sophomore made no mistake with her header from just a few feet away.

"She fed me a great ball," said McGrath, who saw action in 17 games last season without recording a goal or an assist. "It's nice to get my first one."

McGrath said the Redhawks played relatively well but have a lot of room for improvement, as might be expected this early in the season.

"The first half was a little rough, but the second half we were more composed," McGrath said. "It was a good first game to get under our belts."

Nelson felt the same way.

"For the first game, it was not bad," she said. "We obviously have a lot of things to work on. We addressed some things at halftime and saw some of it in the second half.

"Arkansas-Little Rock is a much-improved team. They gave us a very good game, and I'm glad they did."

Junior goalkeeper Lindsay Pickering, the reigning Ohio Valley Conference defensive player of the year, was credited with four saves to earn the shutout.

Nelson said earlier in the week that she was excited about her seven-player freshmen class, and she echoed those thoughts following Friday's match.

Three of the rookies -- Courtney Alexander, Nicole Monks and Cassie Brown -- started against the Trojans.

Alexander was particularly impressive as she had a team-high three shots, including two excellent scoring opportunities in the first half. She shot wide on one and UALR keeper Ashley Boccarossa made a nice stop on the other.

"Courtney is just a workhorse," Nelson said. "For all the good things she did, I wish she had gotten a goal.

"Nicole and Cassie also did a lot of good things. They're all real composed."

Nelson expects a tough test from Evansville Sunday.

"They are a very good team," she said. "We will definitely have to play a good game."