CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Missouri State women's soccer picked up its second straight road win Thursday evening, powering past SEMO with a clinical second-half surge to secure a 3-0 victory. Emma Shields, Reilly Heman, and Brooke Cattoor provided the scoring punch, while the Bears' defensive unit kept the Redhawks quiet for the full 90 minutes.

Missouri State struck first in the 30th minute, capitalizing on a high press that had disrupted SEMO throughout the opening half. Reilly Heman slipped a perfectly-timed ball through the back line, sending freshman Emma Shields in on goal. Shields calmly slotted her finish into the bottom left corner at the 29:35 mark, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.

The momentum carried over immediately after the break. Just four minutes into the second half, Julia Kristensen burst forward from midfield, driving the ball into the attacking third before delivering a low cross into the box. Heman was waiting and made no mistake, slotting a composed finish into the bottom left corner at 49:06 to double the lead. Less than a minute later, Missouri State struck again. After SEMO blocked a shot into the path of Brooke Cattoor who pounced on the rebound and buried it at 50:02, putting the Bears firmly in control at 3-0.

From there, the Missouri State defense took over. Anchored by Kendall Petoskey, Maddie Schneiderhahn, Riley Smith, and Kayla Smith, the Bears back line kept the Redhawks contained, winning challenges in the air and shutting down attacking lanes. Goalkeeper Ella Becker secured her first shutout of the season and the second clean sheet of her career as Missouri State posted its first clean sheet of the year.

"The team was on a mission tonight to get a shutout and they completed the task with a full team defensive effort" said head coach Kirk Nelson. "At half we made some adjustments in our strategy and were able to execute it and put away two quick goals to get us to the 3-0 mark. Winning back to back games on the road is a large accomplishment. Very excited to be back at home this Sunday in a key in-state matchup."

With the victory, Missouri State improves to 2-2-1 on the season and returns home for its next matchup on Sunday, Aug. 31, against Missouri at 1:00 p.m. Admission to home games at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium is free all season.