CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini soccer begins a two-match road stretch in the Buckeye State this week, visiting Bowling Green on Thursday, Sept. 9 at 6 PM CT and Toledo on Sunday, Sept. 12 at 12 PM CT. Thursday's match will be streamed free on WBGU- Youtube, while Sunday's match will be streamed live on ESPN+. Additional updates from the match can be found by connecting with @IlliniSoccer on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

After a winless three-match home stretch at Demirjian Park, Illinois looks to continue its unblemished record on the road. The Orange and Blue are 2-0 this season away from Demirjian Park, with wins over Missouri and Illinois State to begin the 2021 season.

ILLINOIS…

• Holds a perfect 2-0 record on the road, compared to an 0-3 record at home.
• Faces Bowling Green for the first time in school history in women's soccer.
• Match up with Toledo for the second time in school history, last defeating the Rockets 5-1 on Aug. 21, 2011 in Champaign.
• Will face former second-team All-Big Ten goalkeeper Jaelyn Cunningham, who was hired as an assistant coach for Toledo on May 4, 2021.
• Hope Breslin has scored five times this season. This ranks her tied for 10th in the NCAA and tied for first in the Big Ten. Her five goals in five matches (1.000 average) rank tied for second in the Big Ten.
• Ranks tied for second in the Big Ten in scoring average (2.400).
• Julia Cili ranks second in the Big Ten in saves (23). Her eight saves vs. Xavier set a new career-high for the sophomore goalkeeper.
• Makena Silber scored her 17^th career goal vs. Xavier. This puts her in a tie for 11^th all-time in career goals scored.  

KNOW THE HISTORY

The Orange and Blue will face Bowling Green for the first time in school history Thursday night in Ohio. Illinois holds a 1-0-0 series advantage over Toledo, defeating them 5-1 in their only meeting on Aug. 21, 2011, in Champaign.

KNOW THE FOES

Bowling Green returns 19 letter winners from last season where they won the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament. The conference title gave the Falcons their fifth appearance in the NCAA tournament, where they fell to Ole Miss 0-0 (4-3 PK's) in the first round. Led by leading goal scorer Madi Wolfbauer (five goals), the Falcons sit at 1-3-1 on the season after dropping their first three matches this season to Notre Dame, Michigan, and Ohio State before defeating Oakland and drawing Michigan State. Bowling Green was picked to finish second in the MAC this season behind Buffalo, but were picked to be the favorite to win the MAC Tournament for the second season in a row.

Toledo is currently riding the longest unbeaten streak to start a season in school history, drawing their first two matches against Purdue Fort Wayne, and Cincinnati before winning three-straight matches against Detroit Mercy, Dayton, and Oakland. The Rockets will first face Indiana State on Friday, Sept. 10 before welcoming the Illini on Sunday. Led by freshman Olivia Dault (three goals) and sophomore Ellie Pool (two goals, one assist), the Rockets were picked to finish 11^th in the MAC this season. The Orange and Blue will see a familiar face in the opposing coaching staff, with former Illini goalkeeper Jaelyn Cunningham roaming the sidelines as an assistant coach for the Rockets.

UP NEXT

After wrapping up the non-conference slate this weekend, Illinois will begin conference play on Friday, Sept. 17 against No. 16 Michigan in Ann Arbor. Kickoff is set for 4 PM CT and will be streamed live on B1G+.

FOLLOW THE #ILLINI

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