ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Drake women's soccer had a host of student-athletes honored with All-Conference selections the Missouri Valley Conference, announced on Wednesday afternoon. The Bulldogs had a total of nine members and its coaching staff recognized by the league.
 
Drake placed three members on the All-Conference First Team, three members on the Second Team, two members on the Third Team, and one member received a nod to the All-Freshman Team. The nine Bulldog players recognized were the most of any team in the league.
 
Meanwhile, the Drake coaches were distinguished as the Coaching Staff of the Year. They shared the title with the Murray State coaching staff. This marks the fourth time that head coach Lindsey Horner and her staff have received the recognition during her tenure.
 
On the First Team for Drake was Alanna Pennington, Eve Blakey, and Madelyn Smith.
 
Pennington has made an immediate impact for Drake during her first season in Des Moines after transferring from Western Illinois. The local product from Ankeny, Iowa has bolstered the Drake backline all season long helping the Blue & White to seven shutouts on the season, including five in league play. The junior was named Defensive Player of the Week twice and has scored one goal.
 
A native of Newcastle, England, Blakey has solidified herself as one of the premier goal scorers in the league tallying eight on the year to go along with three assists. She leads the Bulldogs in points, goals scored, shots, and shots on goal with four game-winners to her credit. She ranks second in the MVC in points and goals as well.
 
In her final season in Des Moines, Smith garners her second consecutive selection to the All-MVC First Team. A key cog in the midfield for the Bulldogs, she has a pair of goals and four assists in 2025 while starting every match logging 1,443 minutes.
 
The trio of Bulldogs placed on the Second Team included Zoey Mahoney, Layla Kelbel, and Addie Ford.
 
A junior from Waukee, Iowa, Mahoney has become a defensive stalwart for the Bulldogs. She was named Defensive Player of the Week after scoring the game-winner, one of her two scores this season, against in-state rival UNI while helping Drake pitch a shutout. Mahoney has now earned All-Conference honors in each of her three seasons.
 
Kelbel finds herself on the Second Team for the second time in her career. The senior consistently puts herself in goal scoring opportunities while also dishing out assists to her teammates. This season, Kelbel has registered one goal and four assists.
 
A mainstay in net for Drake, Ford provides a steady presence as the last line of defense. Over the course of the season, the Davenport, Iowa native has racked up 46 saves leading to a save percentage of .807, which ranks fourth in the MVC. She also has produced six solo clean sheets, tied for the second most in the league.
 
Angela Gutierrez and Isabella Balsley picked up Third Team selections.
 
Gutierrez has been placed on the All-MVC Third Team each year of her career. This season the Oakdale, Minnesota product leads Drake in the assist department with five, which ties her career mark for assists in a season.
 
Another local player from Johnston, Iowa, Balsley burst on to the scene in her sophomore campaign scoring six goals. Four of her goals this season came in league play, which has her tied for the most goals against conference opponents.
 
Rounding out the Bulldog honors was Ivy Sobel on the All-Freshman Team. Appearing in 13 games, Sobel logged one goal and one assist over 267 minutes of action.
 
The Bulldogs will hit the pitch on Thursday for their MVC Tournament Semifinal match against No. 4 Illinois State. Drake, as the No. 1 seed, hosts the Redbirds from Mediacom Stadium with kickoff slated for 3 p.m. CT.

Player of the Year: Mary Hardy, Murray State
Defensive Player of the Year: Megan Wilson, Murray State
Goalkeeper of the Year: Madi Valenti, Illinois State
Freshman of the Year: Kiara Desiderio, Valparaiso
Coaching Staff of the Year (tie):
   Drake – Lindsey Horner, Kevin Brennan, Sonia Allison-Rodriguez, Matt Tennyson
   Murray State – Matt Lodge, Brad Wilson, Emily Kelly
MVC Fair Play Award: UIC
 

FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.	Hometown / High School
GK	Madi Valenti	Illinois State	R-So.	St. Charles, Mo. / Francis Howell Central
D	Alanna Pennington	Drake	Jr.	Ankeny, Iowa / Ankeny Centennial
D	Jade Rehberger	Illinois State	Sr.	Fort Thomas, Ky. / Highlands
D	Megan Wilson	Murray State	Sr.	Maidstone, England / Chobham Academy
D	Brooklyn Woods	Indiana State	Sr.	Waukee, Iowa / Waukee
M	Mary Hardy	Murray State	Sr.	Ballwin, Mo. / Parkway West
M	Madelyn Smith	Drake	R-Sr.	St. Louis, Mo. / Marquette Catholic
F	Breece Bass	Murray State	So.	Indianapolis, Ind. / Franklin Central
F	Eve Blakey	Drake	Sr.	Newcastle, England / Academy of Sport, Gateshead
F	Riley Collett	UIC	Sr.	Fond du Lac, Wis. / Fond du Lac
F	Sophia Schlicklin	Southern Illinois	So.	Phoenix, Ariz. / Sandra Day O'Connor
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.	Hometown / High School
GK	Addie Ford	Drake	Jr.	Davenport, Iowa / Davenport Central
GK	Griselda Revolorio	Murray State	Jr.	Washington, Ind. / Indiana University
D	Guliana Balistreri	Southern Illinois	So.	San Diego, Calif. / Grossmont
D	Zoey Mahoney	Drake	Jr.	Waukee, Iowa / Waukee Northwest
D	Riley Mathews	Indiana State	Fr.	Columbia, Ill. / Columbia
M	Kiara Desiderio	Valparaiso	Fr.	St. John, Ind. / Hanover Central
M	Katie Donoghue	Murray State	Fr.	Haarlem, The Netherlands / Eerste Christelijke Lyceum
M	Dana Nadda	Southern Illinois	Jr.	Cairo, Egypt / IMG Academy
M	Molly O'Rear	Valparaiso	Sr.	Naperville, Ill. / Naperville Central
M	Laken Whittington	Belmont	Jr.	Plainwell, Mich. / Plainwell
F	Taylor Johnson	Evansville	Jr.	Evansville, Ind. / Reitz
F	Layla Kelbel	Drake	Sr.	Hartland, Wis. / Lake Country Lutheran
THIRD TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.	Hometown / High School
GK	Allie Lammers	Evansville	So.	Cincinnati, Ohio / Mount Notre Dame
D	Sophia Balistreri	Northern Iowa	Sr.	Muskego, Wis. / Muskego
D	Kaysey Castro	UIC	Gr.	Fishers, Ind. / Fishers
D	Brielle Laberge	Evansville	So.	Cumming, Ga. / Forsyth Central
D	Grace Petrie	Illinois State	Fr.	Stratford, Conn. / Stratford
D	Kennedy Wise	Belmont	Sr.	Highland Village, Texas / Marcus
M	Olivia Anderson	Southern Illinois	Sr.	Naperville, Ill. / Naperville North
M	Hannah Gryzik	UIC	Sr.	Elk Grove Village, Ill. / Elk Grove
M	Emmy Higgins	UIC	Jr.	Evansville, Ind. / Castle
F	Tori Angelo	Indiana State	So.	Perkasie, Pa. / Pennridge
F	Isabella Balsley	Drake	So.	Johnston, Iowa / Johnston
F	Angela Gutierrez	Drake	Jr.	Oakdale, Minn. / Tartan
F	Olivia Knoepfle	Northern Iowa	Sr.	Andover, Minn / Andover
F	Alex Lehnert	Indiana State	So.	New Lenox, Ill. / Lincoln-Way Central
F	Macy Smith	Northern Iowa	Sr.	Waverly, Iowa / Waverly Shell-Rock

 

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Pos.	Name	School	Hometown / High School
D	Katelyn Hnatek	Belmont	Carlsbad, Calif. / La Costa Canyon
M	Ivy Sobel	Drake	Denver, Colo. / Denver South
M	Lily Kytasaari	Evansville	Platte City, Mo. / Platte County
D	Grace Petrie	Illinois State	Stratford, Conn. / Stratford
F	Rylann Law	Illinois State	Chatham, Ill. / Glenwood
D	Riley Mathews	Indiana State	Columbia, Ill. / Columbia
M	Isabella Berta	Indiana State	Joliet, Ill. / Joliet Catholic Academy
M	Katie Donoghue	Murray State	Haarlem, The Netherlands / Eerste Christelijke Lyceum
D	Ava Wilson	Murray State	Lexington, Ky. / Henry Clay
D	Brooke Gosse	Southern Illinois	St. Augustine, Fla. / Bartram Trail
M	Kiara Desiderio	Valparaiso	St. John, Ind. / Hanover Central
F	Martha Goddard	Valparaiso	Clapham, London, England / Alleyns School