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Women's Soccer
#13 Illinois Dominates Play in 1-1 Tie With Denver
Aug. 30, 2009
DENVER - The No. 13 Illinois soccer team tied Denver 1-1 on Sunday in double overtime at the DU Invitational, as the Illini dominated play and owned a 23-5 shot advantage over the Pioneers at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium. Junior midfielder Cory Steigerwald scored Illinois' lone goal in the 80th minute as the Orange and Blue move to 2-0-1 on the season. "Unlike Friday where the play was even and we finished our opportunities, today we created the large majority of the chances and weren't very sharp and crisp anywhere on the field," head coach Janet Rayfield said. "That's the challenge of learning the mental focus it takes to play two games in the same weekend. They were able to get an early goal because of our lack of focus, and then Denver was able to sit back and make it difficult for us to get behind their defense. "The second game in a weekend is the hardest, but the difference in the game was that we let our fatigue affect our execution. We have to be able to execute." Denver got on the board quickly, as forward Kaitlin Bast made the score 1-0 in favor of the Pioneers in the 4th minute. After a Denver corner kick, Bast headed in the goal with a double assist from teammates Mariah Johnston and Lizzy Carlson. The Illini had several offensive attempts following the Pioneers' goal, but were unable to score, taking a 1-0 deficit into halftime despite owning an 8-2 shot advantage and 4-1 corner kicks advantage. Illinois kept Denver's defense even busier in the second half, out-shooting the Pioneers 11-1. Steigerwald finally scored for the Illini in the 80th, burying a loose ball to the back of the net after a Marissa Mykines' corner kick. Freshman Niki Read had a shot on goal in the 81st, and the Illini also had late attempts by senior Courtney Bell and sophomore Julie Ewing before the end of regulation. Illinois dominated the overtime periods as well, as Denver goalkeeper Lara Campbell had to make two saves in the closing minutes to preserve the 1-1 tie. For the match, Campbell made six saves while Illini keeper Alexandra Kapicka collected three. The Illini owned a 9-3 advantage on corners, but were also caught offside seven times by the Denver defense. Seven Illinois players had two or more shots throughout the game, led by Read's five attempts - two of which were on goal. The DU Invitational named an 11-member all-tournament team, with three Illini selected in junior forward Jordan Hilbrands, junior defender Krystin Miller and Mykines. Hilbrands scored both of Illinois' goals in the 2-1 win over #18 Colorado on Friday.
The Orange and Blue have a pair of big games next weekend in hosting the Illini Challenge Cup at the Illinois Soccer Stadium. The Illini will face No. 9 UCLA on Friday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m., then play UC Santa Barbara on Sunday, Sept. 6 at 2 p.m. UCLA will also play No. 7 Florida on Sunday at 11 a.m. |
