Women’s Soccer Announces 2023 Schedule

SPRINGFIELD – Highlighted by non-conference home matchups against Oklahoma State and Oregon, the Missouri State women’s soccer team will navigate an 18-game regular-season schedule for the upcoming 2023 campaign, head coach Kirk Nelson announced today. 
 
“Everyone in the program is extremely excited about this schedule,” Nelson said. “It is arguably one of the strongest non-conference slates we have ever faced. We will be playing opponents from the Big12, SEC, and PAC-12 to name a few. This will set the tone and push us as we build into a very tough conference run.” 
 
The Bears have an even-split of nine home games and nine road contests, with all home matches taking place at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium in the heart of campus. Nelson’s squad will host a pair of exhibition contests on Saturday, Aug. 5 (vs. Kansas State) and Saturday, Aug. 12 (vs. Kansas City).

Missouri State will then open the 2023 regular season — and its eight-game non-conference slate — on Thursday, Aug. 17 at SIU Edwardsville. 

The Bears then host three of their next four contests at Allison South, including their marquee home-opener against Oklahoma State on Sunday, Aug. 20. Missouri State later hosts its first PAC-12 opponent in program history when it squares off with Oregon on Sunday, Aug. 27. 

August concludes versus Oral Roberts at home on Thursday, Aug. 31.

A seven-game September slate features home games against Lindenwood (Sept. 7) and a Valley home opener versus Illinois State (Sept. 21) to go with a league matchup with Belmont (Sept. 24). Road games against Tulsa (Sept. 3), Missouri (Sept. 10), Valley opener at Murray State (Sept. 17) and Valparaiso (Sept. 28) are also in store. The Bears and Missouri have not met in a regular-season match since 1998, and the Sept. 10 showdown will be played at a neutral site in Fenton. 
 
The regular season will conclude in October with six Missouri Valley Conference matchups, including home games against Drake (Oct. 5), Northern Iowa (Oct. 15) and Southern Illinois (Oct. 19). The regular season concludes at Evansville (Oct. 22).
 
Dates for the MVC Tournament include Oct. 26, Oct. 29, Nov. 2 and Nov. 5. The first round of the NCAA Tournament begins on Nov. 19. 

The 2023 season will be Nelson’s second as head coach of Missouri State. Last year, he led the Bears to a 12-7-2 overall record, an MVC Tournament title and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017. He returns 10 starters from last year’s squad, including seven all-conference players.