#16 Illini Soccer Opens Big Ten Slate at Home

Rankings by Top Drawer Soccer
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 16 Illinois soccer is set to begin its Big Ten conference play on Friday (Sept. 12) when Indiana makes the trip to Demirjian Park. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT. Illinois broke into Top Drawer Soccer's rankings this week to earn its first ranking of the year, slotting in at No. 16.

First year head coach Katie Hultin has the program off to its best start since 2004 when they also started 7-0 tying the best start in program history. Illinois is one of two teams remaining in the nation to not drop a match yet this season joining Colorado State. Coach Hultin is the first head coach in program history to win her first seven games in her debut season.

Sarah Foley recorded her first career hat trick in the match this past Sunday against Valparaiso, marking the first time since 2021 a Fighting Illini has scored three goals in a game (Hope Breslin). She also tallied an assist to cap off her seven-point game. Foley is tied for third in the Big Ten with five goals on the season.

Cayla Jackson joined Foley by ending a four-year drought with her two assists in the match against the Beacons. She's the first to assist on two goals since her teammate Sydney Stephens last did in 2021.

Izzy Lee has been tremendous on the season as well keeping five clean sheets, her new single season career high, with 28 saves across seven games. She currently leads the Big Ten in three statistics: shutouts (five) where she also ranks second nationally, save percentage (0.966) which ranks sixth nationally and goals against average (0.154) which is seventh nationally.

As a team, Illinois leads the Big Ten in a few categories including goal differential (14), goals against average (0.143), save percent (0.971), shot accuracy (0.595), shutout percentage (0.857) and won-lost-tied percentage (1.000). Illinois also has the longest active win streak in the NCAA winning their last eight.

SCOUTING INDIANA

Indiana currently holds a 3-2-1 record beating Youngstown State (6-1), Ball State (1-0) and Ohio (1-0) while falling to Saint Louis (1-0) and Bellarmine (1-0). The Hoosiers tied 2-2 to No. 24 Xavier on Sept 4. Illinois currently holds a 15-9-4 advantage in the all-time series record against Indiana. The Illini earned a 1-0 win in their last meeting on Oct. 17, 2024, in Bloomington and the first meeting dates to Oct. 5,1997 which was also in Bloomington.

ILLINOIS NOTES

• Illinois has the longest active win streak in the NCAA winning their last eight matches.
• Head coach Katie Hultin has led the team to its first 7-0-0 start since 2004 matching the program's best start set that year. She's now the only head coach in program history to win her first seven games in her debut season.
• Izzy Lee has posted five clean sheets this season in seven appearances, making 28 saves across those seven games. She now has 10 career shutouts and has a new single-season shutouts career high.
  • She leads the Big Ten in three difference categories: shutouts (five), save percentage (0.966) and goals against average (0.154). In those stats nationally she ranks second, sixth and seventh, respectively.
• Sarah Foley leads the team in goals (five) and points (11) after recording her first career hat trick against Valparaiso on Sept. 7. She's the first Illini to have a hat trick since Hope Breslin in 2021.  
  • She has two game winners on the season which is the second most in the conference and her five goals on the year are the third most in the Big Ten.
• Emma Yee registered her first career brace on Sunday against Valparaiso; she now has four goals on the season for the second most on the team and sixth most in the Big Ten.
• Ashley Stellon's four assists lead the team and are the third most in the Big Ten. Her assists per game ranks fourth in the conference (0.57).
• Cayla Jackson scored a goal and two assists in the match against Valparaiso to become the first Illini since Sydney Stephens in 2021 to have two assists in a match.
  • She now has three goals on the year with eight points which both rank third on the team.
• A pair of freshmen (Ashlyn Adams and Kyra Berman) each have an assist on the season for their first collegiate points.