Oct. 21, 2005

Box Score

Bloomington, Ind. - Illinois gave coach Janet Rayfield her 50th career win as defender Kelly Campbell knocked in the game-winning goal in the 87th minute to take a 1-0 victory on a misty, muddy night at Indiana.

Campbell (Gaithersburg, Md.) put in the game-winning goal on a free kick from 35 yards out in the center of the field at 86:10. Forward Ella Masar (Urbana, Ill.) drew a foul, then Campbell took the restart, skipping a goal underneath Hoosier goalkeeper Stacey Van Boxmeer, who appeared to expect the ball to take a higher hop off the ground. The goal was just the second of Campbell's career and first since Nov. 7, 2002, coming unassisted. Both of her goals have been game-winners.

"They weren't expecting it," Campbell said of her shot. "I knew to hit it low and hard with the conditions tonight. I just took the chance and it was awesome."

For the second straight game, Illinois' defense dominated, this time not allowing a shot on goal the entire 90 minutes. It is the first time all season Indiana has been held without a shot on frame. Goalkeeper Lindsey Carstens (West Chester, Ohio) collected her sixth shutout of the season, playing well even though she did not have to make a save. The Illini controlled the second half expertly, with the Hoosiers mounting only two counterattacks. Indiana took only seven shots the entire game.

"We defended well and made good decisions," Rayfield said. "We had one miscommunication at the top of the box near the end of the first half, but that was about it. Otherwise it was a clean slate."

Each team had a handful of scoring opportunities in the first 45 minutes, but neither was able to capitalize as the game went to halftime with no score. The Illini outshot Indiana 7-4 in the first half and had a 3-1 corner kick advantage.

With the win, Illinois improves to 9-4-3 overall, 5-2-1 in the Big Ten. The Illini's next opponent, Purdue, lost at home to Iowa, 2-1 in overtime. That decision gives Sunday's 1 p.m. contest at Purdue even more importance in regard to seeding for the Big Ten tournament. Purdue currently has a one-half game lead on Illinois and a two-point advantage.

"We just have to take care of the things we can," Rayfield said. "The win tonight is important because Sunday is going to be a dogfight. The Iowa-Purdue result tonight shows that in the Big Ten any team can win on any given night."