CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois soccer concludes Big Ten and 2024 play on Sunday when they welcome Northwestern to Demirjian Park. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT.
The 2024 season marks the 28th season of Illinois soccer, with the Illini holding an overall record of 290-225-48 (.558), and the 23rd season under the leadership of head coach Janet Rayfield.
LAST TIME OUT
The Illini went 1-1-0 in their previous matchweek, earning a 1-0 at Indiana on Oct. 17 before a 2-1 defeat at Rutgers on Oct. 20.
Sarah Foley’s 13th minute goal was all Illinois needed against the Hoosiers, as the Orange and Blue kept their fourth clean sheet of the season and earned their first win in Bloomington since March 13, 2021.
The Scarlet Knights jumped out to a 1-0 lead over the Illini in the 23rd, but a stunning free kick from Foley leveled the contest in the 25th minute, the junior’s 10th goal of the season. Rutgers, however, would take the lead for good in the 32nd minute.
SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
The Illini lead in the all-time series against the Wildcats 14-10-4, with the last meeting between the two programs ending in a scoreless draw on Sept. 28, 2023, in Evanston, Ill. Coming into the final match of the regular season, Northwestern owns a 6-8-3 record on the year and a 1-7-2 record in Big Ten play, after getting a 3-0 win against Michigan and taking a 1-0 loss to No. 21 Michigan State in their previous matchweek.
The Wildcats currently sit at 15th in the conference standings after being picked to finish 12th in the preseason poll, with defender Emma Phillips and mid fielders Josie Aulicino and Caterina Regazzoni being named to the preseason Big Ten players to watch list.
ILLINOIS NOTES
- Illinois picked up its first comeback win of the season on Oct. 6 at Purdue…the Illini had also previously been 0-3-0 on the season when trailing at halftime…it was also the Illini’s first win when trailing at the half since Sept. 22, 2022, at Maryland…the Orange and Blue have now won three-straight matches over Purdue, the longest such streak in program history, and have also won two-straight in West Lafayette after going winless in their first 10 road matches against the Boilermakers.
- Lia Howard scored her third goal of the season, and her second match-winner, on Oct. 6 at Purdue in the 83rd minute of the contest…all three of Howard’s goals this season have come in the 80th minute or later…the junior is third on the squad with three goals and is also tied for the team lead with four assists…her 10 points also rank third on the Illini.
- Sarah Foley scored her team-leading 10th goal of the season with a stunning free kick on Oct. 20 at Rutgers…she also scored her second brace of the season on Sept. 19 at Wisconsin, her second-career brace, with her first-career brace coming on Sept. 8 at Mercer…Foley’s 10 goals are fourth-most among Big Ten players…it is also the first time an Illini has hit the double-figure mark in a season since 2015 (Jannelle Flaws, 15)…she enters the matchweek with nine goals in her last 13 contests, amassing 18 points during that span…the 10 goals is a career-best mark and the junior has also set a career-best mark with 22 points on the season (10 G, 2 A)…Foley’s 22 points are the most by an Illini in a single season since 2015 (Flaws, 28)…Foley also leads the squad with five game-winning goals, which is tied for fourth-most in the nation.
- Izzy Lee has recorded four clean sheets and 89 saves through 17 matches this season, tied for 21st-most in the country…her 79.5 save percentage is the second-highest mark among conference keepers that have seen at least 1,530 minutes of action on the season…she leads Big Ten keepers in saves and saves per game (5.24).
- Illinois ranks tied for second in the Big Ten with 33 assists, which ranks tied for 30th nationally…the Illini have 17 players that have recorded an assist on the season.
- Claire Murray became the Illini’s 11th different goalscorer this season when she found the back of the net just 42 seconds into the match on Sept. 8 at Mercer…the last time Illinois had at least that many goalscorers in a single season was 2022, also 11…with Angie Galo’s first-career goal vs. Illinois State on Aug. 25, she became the 10th different Illini to find the back of the net this season…the Illini had nine different goalscorers in the 2023 season
- Demirjian Park welcomed 1,328 fans on Aug. 25 vs. Illinois State, the largest crowd in the history of the facility, which officially opened in 2021…it’s also the largest Illinois soccer crowd since 2013.
- Regan Moody’s goal vs. Missouri on Aug. 22 was the ninth goal scored by Illinois in the 2024 season…all of the first-nine goals scored by the Illini in 2024 came from a different player.
- In the Illini’s season opener on Aug. 15 vs. Wright State, 15 different players recorded a point in the contest, the most by any team in the country in the first matchweek. The six goals scored were the most in a single match by the Illini since an 8-0 triumph over Northern Illinois on Aug. 26, 2018.
- Orange and Blue newcomers have made an instant impact on the pitch, with Lauren Seppi (1 G, 1 A), Lindsey DuSatko (1 A), Mia Gildea (1 A), Emma Yee (1 A) and Bella Zanoni (1 A) recording goal contributions in their Illini debuts on Aug. 15 vs. Wright State.
- The Fighting Illini began the season for the third-straight year at Demirjian Park, coming away with wins over Illinois State (1-0, 2022) and Loyola (3-2, 2023) in the last two curtain raisers. Following its win over Wright State on Aug. 15, Illinois has won six-straight season openers, dating back to 2019.
- Illinois finished the 2023 season with a 6-8-3 record, including a 2-6-2 mark in Big Ten play. The Illini went 4-3-0 on the home pitch at Demirjian Park and 2-5-3 on the road.
- Illinois will face six opponents in 2024 that begin the season ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Top 25; Nebraska (6), UCLA (11), Georgia (14), Wisconsin (19), USC (23) and Iowa (25). The Illini went 2-3-0 against ranked opponents last season, their most ranked wins in a single season since 2018.
- The Illini return 16 letterwinners to the 2024 squad, seven of which started double-digit matches in 2023; Kennedy Berschel (17), Ella Karolak (17), Mya Archibald (16), Ellen Persson (16), Sydney Stephens (15), Sarah Foley (15) and Lia Howard (11). Illinois also returns a large portion of its offensive output, with 67 percent (14/21) of its goals and 68 percent (15/22) of its assists.
