ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Missouri State women's soccer team was picked fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll of the league's coaches, as announced by the conference office on Monday (Aug. 15).  MSU notched one first-place vote and 24 overall points to place behind Drake (44 points), Loyola, (39), Evansville (37) and Illinois State (29).  Junior Mary Disidore and sophomore Brooke Prondzinski landed spots on the Preseason All-MVC team.
 
"I think that's great recognition for those two," said head coach Rob Brewer, "and we expect them to have a great year.  There is a chance for us to go out and prove that we are better than a fifth-place team."
 
Disidore, a member of last season All-MVC first team, has started every match in her two seasons at MSU.  The feisty midfielder has five career assists and was named to the MVC All-Tournament team in 2015.  As a freshman, Disidore picked up All-MVC honorable mention and MVC All-Freshman Team accolades.
 
Prondzinski started 16 matches as a freshman and led the Bears with eight assists.  She earned All-MVC second team laurels a season ago and was tops on the team with 49 shots taken.  A member of the MVC All-Freshman team, Prondzinski added three goals, all at home last season.
 
The Bears finished 9-7-1 overall in 2015, tied for the most wins among MVC teams.  MSU held a 3-3-0 record in conference play, participating in the MVC Tournament for the 19th time in 20 seasons.  Seven starters and 13 letterwinners return to the 2016 squad.
 
Missouri State begins the regular season on Friday (Aug. 19) at Arkansas State with a 4:00 p.m. tilt in Jonesboro.  The Bears continue a season-opening three-match swing with battles at Texas Tech (Aug. 21) and at UMKC (Aug. 24) before the home opener at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium on August 26 against Little Rock.  The 6:00 p.m. contest versus the Trojans will be the first-ever production of The Valley on ESPN3 for the MSU women's soccer team.
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