COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Illinois captured a 3-2 victory over Maryland (2-2-5) at Ludwig Field on Thursday to earn their first Big Ten win of the season.
The Orange and Blue move to 6-3-1Â on the season and captured their first Big Ten road victory since April 3, 2021.
"Tonight was about grit and determination," said head coach Janet Rayfield. "They found a way to win. The goals came from all different ways: a great strike, a second ball on a restart and a composed finish inside the 18. We added some relentless defending and [Julia Cili] made some great saves. This was a team Big Ten win."
Maryland needed just 14 seconds to take the lead, capitalizing on an Illinois turnover in the defensive third. The Illini began pushing for an equalizer soon after, earning a pair of corners in the eighth minute but were unable to capitalize on their spell of pressure.
Julia Eichenbaum nearly brought the sides level in the 29th minute after she was picked out on a free kick by Ella Karolak, but her effort was placed too close to the goalkeeper. Illinois would go into the half down 1-0.
Coming out of the break, Maryland nearly doubled its lead in the 55th minute, when Mikayla Dayes was through on goal, but goalkeeper Julia Cili was up to the task, making a sliding stop to keep the Illini in the contest. That save was prove to be vital, as in 57th minute, Maeve Jones played Sydney Stephens into space outside the box and the sophomore midfielder ripped a right-footed shot from distance into the top right corner for her first goal of the season.
The Illini continued to apply pressure on the Terrapins and it would pay off again in the 66th minute. Aleah Treiterer whipped in a dangerous ball from a corner kick that was initially cleared, but the ball landed at her feet again in the penalty area where she played in another cross that would find its way to Ella Karolak, who struck her volley sweetly into the top of the goal to give Illinois the lead.
Six minutes later, Ashley Prell doubled the Illinois lead in the 72nd minute when she capitalized on a Maryland defensive miscue and found herself alone on goal, where she coolly slotted home a right-footed finish for her second goal of the campaign.
It was a nervy end to the match when the Terps cut the lead back to one in the 78th minute, but the Illini defense was able to see out the remaining 12 minutes to secure the three points.
Next Up
The Illini's road trip continues on Sept. 25 with a trip to University Park, Pa., to take on No. 17 Penn State, with kick off slated for 11 a.m. CT.
