Aug. 29, 1999
CHAMPAIGN, ILL. - Going 2-0 is nothing new to Illinois. The Illini have started their first two seasons with five- and four-match winning streaks, respectively. In going 2-0 on the opening weekend of 1999, however, Illinois has knocked off a pair of conference favorites.
The Illinois performance Sunday was simply dominating in a 3-0 home triumph of Eastern Illinois, the pre-season favorite to win the Ohio Valley Conference. That marked the first time in three tries that the Illini have beaten their neighbors down I-57, dropping 7-1 and 4-2 scores each of the last two seasons. Friday the Illini put away Conference USA favorite Marquette, 3-1, in the home debut.
Lisa Baldwin (Lindenhurst, N.Y./H.S.) had to be assisted off the field with a twisted right ankle in the first half, but returned after intermission to score two goals, her second and third tallies of the young season.
?Coming back the way she did showed a lot of courage,? said head coach Tricia Taliaferro of Baldwin. ?It shows a tremendous level of maturity to respond with that kind of performance.?
The same can be said for the rest of the Illini, who outshot Eastern Illinois 19-4 in the first half, but had only one late-first half goal to show for it. Emily Brown (Winnetka, Ill/New Trier H.S.) converted her second goal of the year off a deflection with an assist from reserve Laura Freeman (Cordova, Tenn. (St. Mary?s Episcopol H.S.).
?We played very strong defensively,? Taliaferro said. ?Although we didn?t convert right away, we showed a lot of patience in waiting for openings and then took advantage of our opportunities.?
?I?ve been on the receiving end of some great passes,? noted Baldwin.
Freeman and Tara Schuling (West Babylon, N.Y./H.S.), a pair of freshman, have been instrumental in providing pressure on the Illini attack when inserted each of the first two games. Schuling scored the Illini?s final goal Friday and played a key role in beginning the run which resulted in the first goal some three minutes after entering the Illini line-up today.
Illinois returned in the second half determined to make good on their chances. That was displayed in five shots in the first seven minutes, the fifth resulting in Baldwin?s first goal from left of
the net from an assist by junior transfer Sarah Rowland (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West H.S.).
The Illini defense allowed just two EIU shots in the second half, keeping the ball inside Panther territory most of the time. Once again the ?Little General,? Heidi Holtzman (Lake Ridge, Va./Gar-Field H.S.), along with another freshman Sue Hodson (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier H.S.), stood tall in rallying the troops on defense. Holtzman snuck into the zone to get off two shots, the second of which sailed just above the crossbar.
Holtzman?s entry in the Panther zone led to the Illini?s final goal of the afternoon, as Baldwin snuck one past the Panthers? goalkeeper into the left corner of the net.
?Even as a sophomore, Heidi is coming of age and becoming a leader on this team,? Taliaferro said.
Illinois out-shot Eastern 34-6 on the day. For the second straight match, Brown led the team in shots with nine. Rowland (6) and Baldwin (5) were next on the Illini shot list.
Illinois will now embark on a three-match road swing, beginning with a pair this weekend in the West Virginia University Invitational Sept. 3 and 5.
