Oct. 17, 1999

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND. -

Much has been said about Tricia Taliaferro taking over as the head coach of the Illinois soccer program at the tender age of 26. While many young coaches often have trouble dealing adversity, Taliaferro sounded more like a veteran with her approach to her club?s disappointing 1-0 loss at Purdue on Sunday.

Taliaferro might have reason to sound the panic button following a scoreless weekend against two teams at the bottom of the Big Ten standings. The weekend included a 0-0 tie at Indiana (2-6-6) and the setback in West Lafayette Sunday to a Purdue (7-8, 2-7) team which had lost eight straight matches by a combined score of 29-4.

?Anytime you try to take a program to a new level, it is difficult,? Taliaferro said. ?We have taken a step up this year, but lately we?re finding how hard it is to climb that next rung up the ladder.?

Instead of focusing on a negative, Taliaferro emphasized the positive. Illinois out-shot Purdue, 19-4 for the game, including an 11-2 advantage in shots on goal. The Illini had five corners to the Boilers? 1, including three golden chances in the opening minutes of the second half. ?Overall we played well today,? Taliaferro added. ?We?re frustrated that we couldn?t get it done. We?re still lacking the maturity and the experience that it takes to finish, and that will come.?

Taliaferro also sung the praises of some young faces stepping into leadership roles, specifically sophomores Heidi Holtzman, Hollie Schurr, and Lindsay Johnson. ?LJ really has stepped her game and is starting to become a real leader on the team,? said the coach.?

?I?ve really worked on my footwork and used that to my advantage,? said Johnson.

Nevertheless the loss was hard to swallow. The scoring chances were plentiful on the day. Time and time again, however, Purdue goalkeeper Jocelyn Cavalier came up with some huge saves. Holtzman?s blast on a rebound off a Kelly Buszkiewicz free kick took a diving Carter stop to prevent a goal. Junior Sarah Rowland and Johnson each had chances on one-time shots just before halftime as well.

Illinois came into the second half with a sense of purpose. Sophomore Emily Brown beat Cavalier just three minutes into the second half, but her shot was deflected wide by a Purdue defender. Buszkiewicz sent a beautiful ball around the Purdue wall on a direct kick just outside the box that was deflected wide as well. The Illini got several nice crossing shots off, including a dandy from Johnson 15 minutes into the half, but time and time again, the Illini weren?t in position to poke it home.

As the saying goes, keep an underdog in the game long enough and it?ll bite you. That happened at the 60:37 mark when Purdue?s Rebecca Broering beat the Illini defense and blasted a shot past Sarah Heggen, who gave up just one goal in net all weekend, for the game?s only score.

Illinois has found the road especially treacherous, going 0-3-2 in its five Big Ten road games, scoring just three goals in those five matches, while going 3-1 at home. The final Big Ten challenge comes Friday as the red hot Iowa Hawkeyes (6-3) come calling. At 3-4-2 in the Big Ten, the Illini need a win to hold off Wisconsin (3-5-1), an upset winner over Michigan (8-1-1) today, and Michigan State (3-5-1). Game time is 7 p.m. at the Illinois Soccer Field.