Oct. 12, 2006
Complete Illinois Week 8 Game Notes in PDF Format
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This Week:
Friday, Oct. 13
ILLINOIS at Michigan State • 3 pm (CT)
Sunday, Oct. 15
ILLINOIS at Michigan • Noon (CT)
Illini Storylines
Illinois is...
...5-1 at home
...7-1 when scoring first
...8-1 when scoring a goal
...6-0 when scoring at least two goals
...6-1 when allowing fewer than two goals
...5-1 when leading at halftime
...3-1 when wearing orange uniforms
Leading Off
Hot Start: Before dropping the match to Ohio State, Illinois had been off to a 4-0-0 Big Ten start, the second-best in program history. The Illini's best conference start was in 2003 when the Orange and Blue went 5-0-1 but tied their first Big Ten match.
For Whom the Bell Tolls: Last Friday against Minnesota, freshman forward Courtney Bell continued the streak of an Illini attacker scoring two goals in a match when she put in a pair against the Gophers. It was the third straight match and fourth in the last five that an Illinois forward had scored at least two goals in a match.
Masterful Masar: For most of the season, Ella Masar has been the quiet assassin, using her pace to set up her opponents and ending up in the Big Ten assists lead. Against Penn State, Masar found another gear and put in a pair of goals, including the tying and winning tallies against then-No. 9 PSU. Masar was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week and also earned mention on the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week and Soccer America Team of the Week.
Click, Click, Boom: After going scoreless in three straight matches earlier this season, the Illini offense exploded with 16 goals in five matches and 22 in eight matches. It was the first time since the 2000 season that Illinois has scored that many goals in five matches.
Rankings Revisted: After stumbling against unranked Ohio State, the Illini slipped to No. 24 in the NSCAA/adidas rankings and dropped out of the Soccer Buzz polls. Both rankings now list Illinois at No. 4 in the Great Lakes region.
Fan Frenzy: Illinois Soccer fans have come out in droves so far in 2006, with the Illini currently second in the Big Ten in average attendance at 995 fans per match. Penn State leads the league with 1,012 fans per match. The match against the Nittany Lions was a high-water mark in program history as a school-record 2,667 fans saw Illinois defeat PSU. Another top-five crowd in school history saw the Illini down Syracuse earlier in the season, with 935 fans at that match.
McBayne, Goal-Scoring Hero: After having a relativly quiet start to the season, Jessica Bayne has exploded offensively with four goals in five games. She scored the first goal against Utah, put in both tallies in the Illini's 2-0 win at Northwestern and scored the third goal against Minnesota. She is now tied for the team lead with Chichi Nweke at five goals.
Chichi Carves Up Utes: Coming into the match against No. 12 Utah with one goal on the season, freshman forward Chichi Nweke exploded with three tallies - including the game-winner - against the Utes. It was just the second time an Illini has scored three goals in a half and the first since the inaugural season of Illini soccer. Oddly enough, Nweke is the sixth freshman in Illini history to notch a hat trick out of the seven players to ever do it in an Illinois uniform.
Fifth-Year Faherty: After sitting out the 2005 campaign with a stress fracture in her knee, midfielder Paula Faherty has returned for her senior season. Faherty didn't let her soccer skills fall by the wayside during the time off, though, as she practiced with the team during the latter part of 2005 and served as the head soccer coach at Urbana High School, leading the Tigers to the IHSA sectional final.
Looking Ahead
The No. 24 Illini head back out on the road this weekend with matches at Michigan State and Michigan. Neither the Spartans or Wolverines have fared well this season, MSU standing at 5-7-1, 1-4-0 in the Big Ten, and Michigan at 5-5-4, 1-2-2.
• Illinois vs. Michigan State Series Notes
Illinois has dominated the series with the Spartans, going 7-3-1 all-time. The Illini have controlled the matches of late, going 3-0-1 since 2003 and 6-1-1 since 2000. Michigan State's last win against Illinois was a 2-0 decision in East Lansing in 2000. The teams fought to a scoreless tie last year in Champaign in their only meeting a year ago.
• Scouting the Spartans
The Spartans have struggled recently, going 1-4-1 in the past six matches. Even though MSU hasn't fared well in the Big Ten, three of its four losses in conference have been by one goal, including a 3-2 double-overtime loss at Penn State. Freshman forward Lauren Hill leads the Spartans with seven goals and 16 points, and freshman midfielder Lauren Sinacola has four goals and nine points. Keeper Nicole Galas has struggled a bit, posting a 1.36 GAA, despite winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 18.
• Illinois vs. Michigan Series Notes
Illinois' series with the Wolverines has been just the opposite of the matches with MSU, as the Illini trail all-time 4-8-1. But the Orange and Blue have fought back lately, going 4-3-1 since 2001 after losing the first five meetings. Illinois has never won in Michigan, going 0-5-0 on the Wolverines' home turf. The Illini went 1-1-0 against Michigan last year, winning 3-2 in Champaign but falling 2-1 in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
• Scouting the Wolverines
Michigan has struggled offensively throughout the season, scoring just 12 goals in 14 matches and five goals in five Big Ten matches. The Wolverines have been out-scored 12-6 in the second period despite nearly equaling their opponents' shot totals in the second half. Judy Coffman and Melissa Dobbyn lead Michigan with 10 points each, Coffman with four goals and two assists, and Dobbyn with three goals and four assists. Keeper Megan Tuura has been very good, holding a 0.44 GAA in 1,028 minutes with five shutouts. In fact. all five of her wins have come by shutout.
Looking Back
Illinois improved its Big Ten record to 4-0-0 with a 3-0 win over Minnesota last Friday, but suffered its first conference loss to Ohio State on Sunday, 2-0. Against the Gophers, Courtney Bell got the Illini on the board early with a goal in the seventh minute and added another in the 28th minute. Jessica Bayne got in on the act at 35:48, punching in a shot from three yards after a corner kick and flicks from Emily Zurrer and Jackie Santacaterina. The second half turned into a knock-down, drag-out affair with neither team mounting much offense as Illinois took the 3-0 win.
Sunday was a different story, as the Illini struggled offensively from the start. Illinois put only two shots on goal in the entire match was was out-shot for just the fifth time all season, falling 2-0 to the Buckeyes.
Fresh Effect
Entering the season as the No. 9-ranked recruiting class in the country, the Illini freshman have lived up to their reputation so far. Here are their first-year highlights:
• Chichi Nweke scored three goals in the second half against then-No. 12 Utah, just the second time an Illini has scored a hat trick in one half.
• Nweke also had at least one point in four straight matches from Sept. 17-Oct. 1.
• Courtney Bell scored a pair of goals against Minnesota - her first career two-goal match at Illinois - and scored three points at Northwestern.
• Jackie Santacaterina has become a force in the midfield, assisting on two goals against Utah and another against Minnesota. She has played 90 minutes four times and has made nine starts.
• Emily Pickard assisted on Ella Masar's game-winning goal in the season-opener against South Carolina.
I See Your Point...
Three Illini players have put together consecutive points streaks of at least three matches this season. Both Chichi Nweke and Ella Masar have scored at least one point in four straight matches, each accomplishing the feat in the four matches from Sept. 17-Oct. 1. During that span, each player had a multiple-goal match, Nweke scoring a hat trick against Utah and Masar putting in two goals against Penn State. Both players are now tied for fourth on the record list for consecutive games with a point.
Carstens Moving On Up
With her four shutouts already this season, Illinois goalkeeper Lindsey Carstens now has 10 career shutouts, good for second on the career shutouts list behind former All-American Leisha Alcia's 24. Carstens has also tied her career high in saves twice this year, collecting six stops apiece against Northwestern and Ohio State.
Illini in Big Ten Stats
As a team, Illinois ranks third in goals, fourth in assists and fourth in points in Big Ten statistics for all games. In Big Ten matches only, Illinois leads the league in goals per game with 2.4, and is second in assists per game at 2.2. The Illini are also third in goals allowed and fourth in corner kicks. See the box on page four for a complete listing of Illini players in Big Ten statistical rankings.
90-Minute Women
It's been a common sight since the return of Emily Zurrer to the Illini back line to see all four Illinois defenders play all 90 minutes. In fact, left back Mary Therese McDonnell has not stepped off the field this season, right back Jessica Levitt has played all but 45 minutes so far and Zurrer has not missed a minute since rejoining the Illini at Texas A&M. Kara Gostisha has also played 86 percent of the team's total minutes this season. Freshman midfielder Jackie Santacaterina has gone the entire match four times, while midfielders Marti Desjarlais and Kristy Weeks each have played the full match twice.
