CONWAY, Ark. - After wrapping up the regular season championship and checking one item off the team's objectives for the season, Lamar University's women's soccer team heads to the Southland Conference tournament focused on another item on that list - the SLC tournament championship. The first step of that journey commences Wednesday against eighth seeded Stephen F. Austin.

Lamar vs. Stephen F. Austin - Wednesday, November 6 at 5 p.m. - Bill Stephens Track & Soccer Complex

A redux of an Oct. 4 matchup in the LU Soccer Complex that saw Lamar win 4-1 over SFA, the Cards and Lady Jacks will meet for the second time this season and the 17th time in the series history. Stephen F. Austin holds a sizable 12-4 lead in that all-time series, but recent history has heavily favored Lamar with Big Red winning four of the last five matchups including a 2-0 shutout of the Lady Jacks the last time the two teams met in a neutral site setting - the 2017 SLC Championship game.

SFA is 8-10 overall this year and 5-6 in SLC play. The Lady Jacks ended the year with a two-game win streak, narrowly squeaking in over tournament hosts the University of Central Arkansas. Despite their low seed, SFA remains an extremely dangerous team once in the conference tournament. In 2018 Stephen F. Austin was the seven seed and advanced all the way to the championship game, knocking out tourney hosts and #3 seed Lamar in a 2-1 game in the semi-finals. The Lady Jacks lost to fifth seeded Abilene Christian in the SLC Championship 3-1. The Lady Jacks have 21 tournament appearances and 15 SLC tourney wins.

The biggest part of SFA's success has been good goalie play, and this year's keeper is no exception. Madeline Talbot was named Second Team All-SLC Keeper after leading the league in save percentage (.929) and goals-against average (.551).

Thankfully Lamar has a more than capable offense with three First Team All-Southland Conference team members at either the forward or mid-field position. That number includes Player of the Year and Forward of the Year Lucy Ashworth and Newcomer of the Year Esther Okoronkwo, who combined for 28 goals and 20 assists in league action (6.91 points per game). Not to be left out is First Team member Anna Loftus who ranked seventh in SLC play in total goals (6) and seventh in total points (15) with three assists against SLC opponents. She's started all 11 of Big Red's SLC games this year and has played 907 minutes. Her 24 shots attempted are third on the team, and her 12 shots on-goal are tied for the third-most on the team.

Joining the offensive attack on the All-SLC First Team is all-star defender Juana Plata. She started all 11 games in SLC competition and played 900 minutes. She has three assists in SLC play and has taken seven shots, four of which have been on-goal.

Another key member of Lamar's league-leading offense was Madison Ledet, a Third Team All-SLC forward. She tied for third in the SLC in total assists (5), started all 11 LU matches in conference play, and has played 911 minutes of those games. She has three goals and five assists against SLC players, totaling 11 points, and she's shooting .579 on-goal.

Sophia Manibo, a member of the Second Team All-SLC, has been a critical portion of the LU defense, earning the SLC Defensive Player of the Week award on Oct. 7. She's started all 11 SLC matches this year and has played 979 minutes of those games, the second-most on the team. She has one goal with eight shot attempts, four of which were on-goal. She has also recorded 1 assist.
 
As a freshman, Second Team All-SLC Kaisa Juvonen has started in 10 SLC matches she's played in and has played 892 minutes, averaging about 90 minutes a game. She has two and one assist in league play and 16 shot attempts with five on-goal.

Head Coach Steve Holeman was named the SLC Coach of the Year for the second time in three seasons after capturing his second SLC regular season award in that span. The Cards were 1-1 in SLC play and 4-6 overall before a phenomenal nine-game winning streak gave the Cardinals the outright league title. Big Red outscored its opponents 34-13 during that streak, which is still active.

The Cards' individual superlative winners and all-conference selections will be honored before their first game at the 2019 Southland Conference Soccer Tournament.

Pending Wednesday's result, Lamar would face either #4 UIW or #5 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the semi-finals on Friday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. The SLC Championship, televised on ESPN+, will be at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 10.

Live stats are available for all matches, and all games will broadcast on the Southland Conference Digital Network until the SLC Championship game, which will be on ESPN+.