West Lafayette, Ind.- Freshman Katie Murray tallied her first career goal on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 20, as Fighting Illini Soccer fell to Purdue, 3-1. The Illini drop to to 6-2-1 on the season and 0-1-1 in Big Ten play while Purdue improves to 6-3-0 overall, 1-1-0 Big Ten. Murray scored her first goal in dramatic fashion, finding the back of the net in the 89th minute of the game with the assist from redshirt senior Jannelle Flaws. Murray tallied two shots on the day for Illinois, both on goal.
Murray marks the seventh Illini to score for the Orange and Blue this season. She has taken seven shots for Illinois, while putting four on goal. Flaws has now racked up a team-leading four assists on the season as well.
Purdue came out of the gates ready to play, outshooting the Illini 7-2 in the first half of play. Purdue was able to put four of those shots on goal in the half. Illini goalkeeper Claire Wheatley came up big for Illinois as she grabbed three saves before the halftime break. Wheatley grabbed seven total in the game as her record moves to 6-2-1 on the season.
Illinois put the pressure on in the second half of play, as UI was able to get 10 shots off in the half. Flaws led the Illini with four shots on the day, two on goal. The Illini fired six shots on goal in the half, putting Purdue's goalkeeper to work. It wasn't until the final minute of play, however, that Illinois would find the back of the net.
Purdue put 10 shots on goal in the game, but Illinois was able to fire seven of its own. The Illini have put 31 shots on goal over the past four games, while limiting opponents to just 16. Prior to today's contest, Illinois had allowed just two shots on goal from each of its last three opponents.
Purdue attempted to make it 4-0 in the final 15 minutes of play, but Wheatley made a clutch diving save to her right to stop the scoring from the Boilermakers. Both Alia Abu-Douleh and Murray attempted shots on goal in the final 10 minutes of play for Illinois, while Flaws shot twice in the final stretch of the game.
Illinois will return to Champaign next weekend, hosting undefeated Rutgers in a televised contest on Thursday, Sept. 24. The Illini will then host Maryland on Sunday for the annual Soccerfest held prior to the game.
Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest on Illini Soccer.
