SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Before the 2016 season opener, the Missouri State field hockey team travels to St. Louis, Mo., on Saturday (Aug. 20) for an exhibition match against the Saint Louis Billikens. The match between the two in-state competitors is set to begin at 11 a.m.
 
Match Info: Missouri State at Saint Louis (Exhibition)
Location: Scott Gallagher Soccer Park – St. Louis, Mo.
Date: Saturday, Aug. 20
Time: 11 a.m.
 
Bear Bites
Picked fifth in the Mid-American Preseason Poll, the Bears return 15 letterwinners from the 2015 season and welcome six newcomers. Last season the Bears went 6-12 overall and 3-3 in MAC play. The Bears won two regular season matches against the Billikens in the 2015 season and played an additional two exhibition matches in the spring, one resulting in a win and the other a tie.
 
Seniors returning for the Bears include Liz Young, Brynne Satre, Ruth Reid and Megan Drew. Last season Young started all 18 games, scoring one goal and ended the season with two points. The senior defender was named to the All-MAC First Team, Academic Team and earned NFHCA National Academic Squad honors.
 
The Bear's junior class brings back Paige Pashea, Amy Reid, Daelynn De Mello, Bianca Mills and Andrea Soler Codina. Soler Codina scored three goals and made one assist in the 2015 season, racking up a total of seven points. Her three goals tied for second on the team.
 
The sophomore class returns Kayla Jordan, Renee Rhoads, Alexa Simpson, Feli Heinzel and Emily Tran. In her freshman campaign, Tran put in the most minutes by any Bear (1120), scoring one goal and earning two points on the season.
 
Newcomers for the 2016 season include freshman Beth Corish, Lizzie Slinkard, Kathryn Mirbaha, Miranda Sherman, Sara O'Malley, Marina Ellison and sophomore transfer Anna Walmsley.
 
Head coach Catherine Ostoich enters her first season leading the Missouri State field hockey team.
 
A Look At The Competition – Saint Louis
The Billikens struggled last season, ending their 2015 campaign with a 1-18 overall record and going 1-7 in the Atlantic-10 Conference. Saint Louis returns 14 letterwinners from last season and welcomes back 9 of last season's starters.
 
Scoring leader Carly Kissinger returns after leading the Billikens offense with four goals last season. Kissinger tied with fellow sophomore Molly Feid for a team-leading eight points on the season. Feid finished the 2015 with three goals and two assists.
 
The Billikens scored 15 goals over the course of the 2015 season.
 
Goalkeepers Jessie Bryan and MeMe Dawson look to fill the shoes of Tori Westhead, who was second in the nation with 175 saves and fourth in the nation with 9.21 saves per game. Sophomore Monica Ryan also helped out on the defensive side of the ball, leading the Saint Louis squad with three defensive saves over the course of the season.
 
The Billikens are led by Danielle Baumgardner, who is in her first year as head coach for the program. 
 
Looking Ahead
The Bears open up the 2016 season with matches against Saint Francis on Aug. 28-29 in Athens, Ohio. Sunday's match is set to begin at 10 a.m. and Monday's match is slotted for 11 a.m. For more information on the Missouri State field hockey team, visit www.missouristatebears.com or on Facebook (Missouri State Field Hockey) or Twitter (MSUBearsFHockey).