Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
#1 Drake
11/11/2026 7:33:00 PM | Women's Soccer
MURRAY, Ky. - Murray State plays at Drake on Thursday evening in the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Championship, with kickoff set for 6 p.m. in Des Moines. The fifth-seeded Racers advanced by winning 1-0 at No. 4 Indiana State on Sunday, while top-seeded Drake received a first-round bye as the regular-season champion.
Murray State has not lost in eight matches, the longest run of its season, and has conceded five goals across it. Addison Howell scored the winner in the quarterfinal, her third goal of the season and her second in four days, and Isa De Santos Gomez made eight saves for the shutout in her fourth consecutive start. The Racers took five points from their first 10 matches and have 16 from the nine since.
The teams drew 1-1 in Des Moines on Oct. 15, when Howell scored in the 59th minute and Murray State put a season-high nine shots on goal. Drake went 7-0-2 in Missouri Valley play, the only team in the conference not beaten in a league match, and finished 8-0-1 at home.
- De Santos Gomez has started four straight and is 2-0-2 with a 1.00 goals-against average, a .800 save percentage and a shutout. Her eight saves on Sunday matched the Murray State single-match high of the season.
- Addison Howell has three goals and four assists for 10 points and has scored in each of the last two matches.
- Drake leads the all-time series 3-2-2. Murray State's only win over the Bulldogs since joining the Missouri Valley came in the postseason, 1-0 in the 2022 conference championship at Carbondale. Its other win was 3-2 at home on Sept. 29, 2004. The Racers have never lost to Drake in a conference tournament match and have drawn each of their last two trips to Des Moines.
- Abbey MacDonald has played every minute of the season, all 1,710.
- Murray State has six shutouts and an .800 team save percentage, tied for third in the conference.
- The Racers drew four yellow cards in 19 matches, the fewest in the Missouri Valley by four, committed the fewest offsides in the league and were named the conference's Fair Play Award winner last week. Breece Bass was named to the All-MVC First Team and Kate Hardy to the All-Freshman Team.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Drake is 12-3-3 and was the only Missouri Valley team not beaten in a conference match, finishing 7-0-2 for 23 points. The Bulldogs have won four straight, are 7-0-3 in their last 10 and did not lose at home, going 8-0-1 at Des Moines.
They scored 35 goals and allowed 10 for a plus 1.39 scoring margin, the best in the conference, and took 230 shots. Angela Gutierrez led the Missouri Valley in goals with 10 and points with 25. Alexa Aylward added seven goals and Zoey Mahoney was second in the league with eight assists.
Goalkeeper Addie Ford led the conference with a 0.64 goals-against average and ranked second in save percentage at .813, conceding six goals in 14 appearances. Drake also drew 20 yellow cards and a red card, the most in the Missouri Valley.
