The SLU Billikens will be going for their seventh straight Atlantic 10 Conference title when season begins in August. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

Nora Nichols
Staff Writer

ST. LOUIS, MO — The Saint Louis University athletics department announced its 2024 women’s soccer schedule on Thursday. SLU will play an 18-game regular season schedule, which includes eight non-conference games and 10 Atlantic 10 Conference contests.

The Billikens will also play at least one preseason exhibition game, which is scheduled for August 10, in Indiana against Evansville.

SLU’s regular season opener will also be its home opener, with the Billikens hosting Kansas City at Hermann Stadium on August 15. Saint Louis will play eight home games this season, including marquee matchups against national powers BYU on August 22 and Penn State on September 1, and five A-10 league games later in September and in October.

The Billikens will play high profile road games at Missouri on August 25, at Missouri State on August 29, and at Creighton on September 6.

SLU will also play its annual rivalry game against SIU-Edwardsville at CITYPARK, home of St. Louis City SC of Major League Soccer. The Billikens and Cougars played the first ever women’s college soccer game at that stadium last year and will continue their rivalry with a matchup there on September 8.

“We are thrilled to announce our 2024 fall schedule,” Billiken head coach Katie Shields said. “The non-conference schedule is challenging, featuring two opponents who finished in the top four of the final 2023 RPI. Each of our non-conference opponents features a different style and challenges that will prepare us to win the Atlantic 10 Conference championship and position us to be successful in the NCAA Tournament.

“In addition to preparing us for a championship season, we look forward to playing high-profile games against BYU and Penn State at Hermann Stadium,” Shields said. “We are excited for our fans to watch the best of women’s college soccer and continue to build community around our program.”

Saint Louis returns seven starters and 11 additional players from its 2023 team that made a sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and reached the Sweet 16 for the first time. The Billikens (19-3-2, 9-0-1 A-10) captured a sixth consecutive A-10 Championship title, claimed a fifth A-10 regular-season crown in six years, and landed 10th in the final RPI and 11th in the final United Soccer Coaches rankings.

Three of SLU’s returning starters have United Soccer Coaches All-America honors on their résumés. Last year, senior forward Emily Gaebe was a first-team selection, and graduate defender Lyndsey Heckel earned inclusion on the second team.

The 2022 season saw Heckel collect first-team plaudits and graduate goalkeeper Emily Puricelli make the third team. Saint Louis and 2023 national champion Florida State are the only NCAA Division I women’s soccer teams with three All-America players on their 2024 rosters.

In addition, Gaebe (2023) and Heckel (2022) have been semifinalists for the MAC Hermann Trophy, awarded to the top player in collegiate soccer. Texas is the only other team with two previous Hermann Trophy semifinalists on its 2024 roster.

The Billikens’ non-conference schedule features teams from seven different leagues – Big 12, Big East (two opponents), Big Ten, Missouri Valley, SEC, Summit and Ohio Valley.

Saint Louis’ 10-game conference schedule includes six of the other seven teams that qualified for the 2023 A-10 Championship. Those opponents are Massachusetts, Saint Joseph’s, Duquesne, VCU, La Salle (which lost to SLU in the championship game) and Dayton. The Billikens begin the league slate September 19 at UMass.

Conference opponents visiting Hermann Stadium are George Washington (September 22), Loyola Chicago (September 26), Saint Joseph’s (October 3), VCU (October 13) and George Mason (October 24). Along with the trip to UMass, the Billikens will visit Duquesne (October 6), Richmond (October 17), La Salle (October 20) and Dayton (October 27).

The eight-team A-10 Championship begins on the first weekend of November; the four quarterfinal matches will be played either November 1 or 2. The semifinals and final are scheduled for November 6 and November 10, respectively. All tournament games will be played on the campuses of the higher-seeded teams in each round.

SLU sports information contributed to this story.

2024 SLU BILLIKENS WOMEN’S SOCCER SCHEDULE

DateTimeAtOpponentLocation
August 10, 2024 (Saturday)5 pmAwayEvansville (exhibition)Evansville, IN
August 15, 2024 (Thursday)7 pmHomeKansas CityHermann Stadium
August 22, 2024 (Thursday)7 pmHomeBYUHermann Stadium
August 25, 2024 (Sunday)7 pmAwayMissouriColumbia, MO
August 29, 2024 (Thursday)6 pmAwayMissouri StateSpringfield, MO
September 1, 2024 (Sunday)1 pmHomePenn StateHermann Stadium
September 6, 2024 (Friday)5 pmAwayCreightonOmaha, Neb.
September 8, 2024 (Sunday)TBANeutralSIUETBA
September 12, 2024 (Thursday)6 pmAwayXavierCincinnati, OH
September 19, 2024 (Thursday)3 pmAwayMassachusettsAmherst, MA
September 22, 2024 (Sunday)1 pmHomeGeorge WashingtonHermann Stadium
September 26, 2024 (Thursday)7 pmHomeLoyola ChicagoHermann Stadium
October 3, 2024 (Thursday)7 pmHomeSaint Joseph’sHermann Stadium
October 6, 2024 (Sunday)NoonAwayDuquesnePittsburgh, PA
October 13, 2024 (Sunday)1 pmHomeVCUHermann Stadium
October 17, 2024 (Thursday)3:30 pmAwayRichmondRichmond, VA
October 20, 2024 (Sunday)NoonAwayLa SallePhiladelphia, PA
October 24, 2024 (Thursday)7 pmHomeGeorge MasonHermann Stadium
October 27, 2024 (Sunday)NoonAwayDaytonDayton, OH

Image courtesy: SLU Athletics