ROSEMONT, Ill. – Illinois goalkeeper Izzy Lee, forward Sarah Foley and forward Cayla Jackson were each named to All-Big Ten teams, the conference announced on Tuesday (Nov. 4). Lee and Foley earned spots on the Second Team, while Jackson garnered Third Team honors.
Lee was the backbone of the Illini defense all season, posting career-highs across the board in saves (118), shutouts (10), and save percentage (0.861). Her 118 saves and 10 shutouts are the most in the Big Ten, while her 0.861 save percentage is second-best in the conference.
The Western Springs, Ill., native's 118 saves are also the program record for a single season, and her 0.861 save percentage is second only to Leisha Alcia's 0.862 mark set in 2003. Lee kept 10 clean sheets in 20 appearances, the fourth-most by an Illini keeper ever and the most since Alexandra Kapicka had nine in 2008.
Foley and Jackson each paced the Orange and Blue scoring attack with the same exact stat line on the season with seven goals, three assists, and 17 points while each netting three game-winning goals. Their 17 points have them each tied for the ninth-most points in the Big Ten.
Foley's 0.638 shots on goal percentage is the most accurate in the Big Ten, putting 30 of her 47 shots on net; her shots on goal per game of 1.50 is the second-best in the conference. She scored her first career hat trick on Sept. 7 against Valparaiso to become the first Illini since Hope Breslin (Aug. 22, 2021) to score three goals in a match. She also registered an assist in that match to score seven points; it was only the sixth 7+-point match in program history and the first since Niki Read's seven on Aug. 26, 2011.
Jackson recorded the first multi-assist game of her career, dishing out two in the Valparaiso match on Sept. 7, while Foley earned her first multi-assist game with two against Maryland on Oct. 5. In Big Ten play, Jackson was the team leader in goals with four and points with nine, while Foley was next in line with two goals and two assists for six points.
Lee and Foley are the first Illini to earn Second Team All-Big Ten honors since Foley did so last year (2024). Jackson is the first Illini Third Team All-Big Ten member since Kendra Pasquale and Makena Silber were tabbed in 2020.
