MADISON, Wis. – Illinois soccer battled to a 0-0 draw at Wisconsin (10-4-3, 5-3-1) on Thursday night at McClimon Soccer Complex.
The Orange and Blue move to 7-7-3Â on the season and are now 2-5-2Â in Big Ten play.
It was a very tense first half of the contest, as both sides did well to prevent any clear-cut chances. The Badgers attempted 11 shots through the first 40 minutes, but the Illini defense did not allow any of those attempts to be on target.
The hosts nearly found the breakthrough in the 41st minute off a corner kick, but Ashley Prell cleared a shot off of the line and Julia Cili followed with a stop of her own to keep the match scoreless.
A few moments later in the 44th minute, the Badgers looked destined to score as a shot from Riley Philben was headed for the top corner, but Cili would not be beaten and made an outstanding save at full stretch to send the match scoreless into halftime.
Coming out of the break, the Illini began to push for the opener, with Eileen Murphy sending a header just over the bar in the 49th minute. Cili would be called upon again in the 53rd minute, as the junior keeper made her fourth save of the match on a shot that was rifled at her near post.
The Illinois defense soaked up the bout of Wisconsin pressure and go on the attack again. Kendra Pasquale fired a left-footed effort off of a well-worked free-kick routine that curled just over the bar in the 66th minute. Julia Eichenbaum came the closest to scoring in the 68th minute, but her shot was tipped over the bar by Badger keeper Erin McKinney.Â
The Illini defense continued their stellar play over the final 20 minutes of the match, not allowing the Badgers to carve out any big chances. Cili would make three more saves during that span, finishing the match with a total of eight, earning the clean sheet.
Sydney Stephens almost claimed the win and all three points when she dribbled her way into space outside of the area with just 10 seconds left, but her shot went just wide and the two teams shared the points.
Next Up
The Illini return home to Demirjian Park on Sunday to take on Minnesota in the regular season finale, with kickoff set for 1 p.m. CT.
