Illini Prepped for Matches against Nebraska, No. 20 Ohio State

WEEK 9: Illinois (7-5-2) at Nebraska (5-4-5) // vs. No. 20 Ohio State (8-2-3)
Match 15: Nebraska	Thursday, Oct. 13 // 7 p.m. CT // Hibner Stadium // Lincoln, Neb.
Match 16: Ohio State	Sunday, Oct. 16 // 1 p.m. CT // Demirjian Park // Champaign, Ill.
Watch Live	Nebraska // Ohio State
Live Stats	FightingIllini.com
Printable Notes	Illinois // Nebraska // Ohio State
Shop	Online Store

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois soccer follows up Sunday's road victory over Purdue with a trip to Lincoln on Thursday to take on Nebraska before returning home to Demirjian Park to take on No. 20 Ohio State on Sunday, Oct. 16.

The 2022 season marks the 26th season of Illinois soccer, with the Illini holding an overall record of 277-207-41 (.567), and the 21st season under the leadership of head coach Janet Rayfield.

Last Time Out

Illinois earned a 2-1 victory at Purdue in its lone match last week. Kendra Pasquale scored the second-fastest goal in program history and also scored the match-winning penalty to secure the programs first-ever victory in West Lafayette. Pasquale would later be named to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week and was also named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week.

Scouting Nebraska

The Illini lead the all-time series between the two programs 8-4-0, with Illinois falling 3-1 to Nebraska in the last matchup on Oct. 21, 2021, at Demirjian Park. The Orange and Blue have gone 5-1-0 in the six meetings played at Demirjian Park. The Huskers have gone 3-1-2 in conference play this season, going 1-0-1 last matchweek. They earned a 2-0 victory on the road at Indiana before playing to a 2-2 draw against No. 16 Ohio State at HIbner Field in Lincoln, Neb.

Nebraska was picked to finish 12th in the Big Ten this season, with forward Eleanor Dale, midfielder Reagan Raabe and forward Sarah Weber named as preseason players to watch.

Scouting Ohio State

The Illini trail in the all-time series between the two programs 9-12-4, with Illinois falling 2-1 to Ohio State in the last meeting on March 21, 2021, at Demirjian Park. Ohio State has gone 3-1-2 in Big Ten play this season, playing to a 2-2 draw at Nebraska in their only match last week. The Buckeyes have gone five matches unbeaten, a season high.

Ohio State was picked to finish fifth in the Big Ten this season, with defender Talani Barnett, forward Kayla Fischer and defender Sydney Jones named as preseason players to watch.

Illini Notes

Junior goalkeeper Julia Cili leads all Big Ten keepers with 74 saves this season. During the match against Penn State, she became the eighth goalkeeper in Illinois history to record 100 career saves.
The victory over No. 17 Butler on Aug. 25 was Illinois' first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 22 Pepperdine on Aug. 30, 2019. The Illini handed the Bulldogs just their fourth loss at Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl since 2017.
For the fourth-straight season, the Illinois soccer team opened the year with a victory as the Illini posted a 1-0 win over Illinois State in the season opener last Thursday at Demirjian Park.
Freshman Sarah Foley had an impressive debut for Illinois as she scored her first collegiate goal just 30 seconds after subbing into Illinois' 4-1 win over Toledo on Aug. 21. She also added an assist later in the match for a total of three points on the day. She tallied six shots, with three on goal in her first collegiate match.
The Illini are entering their 26th season of competition, and the 21st under head coach Janet Rayfield.
Illinois is coming off a 5-11-1 season, including a 1-8-1 mark in Big Ten action.
The Illini are returning 24 letterwinners from last season, while welcoming in nine newcomers to the roster.
Pasquale is the leading point getter returning from the 2021 squad with 10 points on four goals and two assists. The redshirt-senior owns 11 goals and five assists in her Illini career.
Also returning is sophomore Sydney Stephens, who led the Illini with five assists on the season.
The Illini return 10 players with 10+ starts last season (Makena Silber, Kendra Pasquale, Aleah Treiterer, Ashley Cathro, Eileen Murphy, Sydney Stephens, Joanna Verzosa-Dolezal, Maeve Jones, Angie Galo, Mackenzie Schuler).
Freshman Lia Howard was named the 2021-22 Gatorade New York Girls Soccer Player of the Year.
The Big Ten announced its Women's Soccer Preseason Players to Watch List on August 15 with redshirt-seniors Ashley Cathro and Kendra Pasquale and senior Eileen Murphy representing the Illini.
Cathro played in all 17 matches and started in 16 for the Illini a season ago, while also leading the team in minutes played (1,502) during the 2021 season.

Next Up

The Illini hit the road for the final time in the regular season to face Wisconsin on Thursday, Oct. 20, before returning to Demirjian Park on Sunday, Oct. 23 to face Minnesota in the regular season finale.

Schedule