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Lyndsey Heckel had no idea.

The ºüÀêÊÓƵ University women’s soccer defender lay flat on her back late in the Atlantic 10 Conference championship game on Sunday afternoon.

Heckel knew she got her head on the corner kick sent into the box by Katie Houck. But she had no idea what happened to the ball after that.

“I thought it went over (the net) or out,� Heckel said.

Actually, it went right where she wanted it to go.

The highlight-reel tally in the 73rd minute broke a tie and propelled the Billikens to a 3-1 win over Massachusetts in front 1,257 fans at Hermann Stadium.

SLU captured its seventh successive A-10 title and earned its seventh consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The pairings will be announced Monday afternoon. The Billikens are assured of at least one home game, likely on Friday night.

SLU (14-1-6) stretched its unbeaten streak to 16 matches. Its last loss was a 2-1 setback to nationally ranked Penn State on Sept. 1.

The Billikens also continued their dominance of the A-10. They are 20-0 and have outscored their opponents 61-9 during the seven-year tournament run that began in 2018.

“It was not an easy championship Sunday,� SLU coach Katie Shields said. “That kind of makes it sweeter.�

Senior Emily Gaebe continued her scoring prowess with a pair of goals against the Minutewomen (13-5-3), who have a legitimate chance of also making the field of 64 despite this setback.

SLU goalie Emily Puricelli made a pair of saves after giving up her first goal following clean sheets in her previous four contests.

Hannah Sawyer added three shots on goal off the bench.

But the afternoon belonged to Heckel, a Nerinx Hall graduate. She was selected as the MVP of the tournament for the second time in her career.

The sixth goal of the season for the five-time first-team all-Atlantic 10 selection was likely the most notable tally of her lengthy career.

And she didn’t even know it at first.

“I kind of blacked out,� Heckel said. “I was on the ground looking up, and Gaebe was leaning over me screaming in my face. I’m like, “Oh my God, it went in.’�

Gaebe got a kick out of delivering the good news.

“She had no clue,� Gaebe said. “I told her, ‘It’s in, we scored.’�

Houck, a Freeburg High grad, put the ball in a perfect spot for Heckel’s second goal on a header this season. She also used her noggin to score in a 4-1 win over La Salle on Oct. 20.

“We practice it every day, and the repetition helps,� Houck said.

Heckel’s main strength is on the back line. She was chosen as the A-10 defensive player of the year. But she moves up on set pieces and presents an enticing target.

“We’ve been trying to sync our service and her timing up to get a clean one like that,� Shields said. “And what a time to get it.�

The Billikens took control with a strong second half. They peppered Massachusetts keeper Bella Mendoza with one shot after another before Heckel finally broke loose.

SLU had eight shots in each half and held a 10-5 advantage in corner kicks. Yet the Bills went into the break tied at 1-1.

“We knew we were going hard, but we knew it was going to take a next level effort to put this game away,� Gaebe said. “I think we came out and executed that.�

Gaebe scored in the 13th minute with a right-footed blast inside the box off a pass from Hannah Larson.

Massachusetts knotted things on a drive by Bella Racinos in the 37th minute. It was the first goal allowed by Puricelli in 436 minutes and 4 seconds.

Gaebe, the school’s career leading scorer, pumped in her 47th career goal with just 41 seconds left in the contest.

The Billikens danced on the field after the match, waving signs proclaiming “7-peat� in honor of the seven-year run of dominance.

“It’s such an honor, and it shows the hard work this program has put in,� Gaebe said.

SLU is hoping to ride its momentum into NCAA Tournament play. It reached the third round for the first time in school history last season before losing in overtime to Penn State.

“We kind of feel like we haven’t really hit our peak yet,� Heckel said.

Added Gaebe, “We’re just so motivated. We have more to come, and we all believe in each other.�