After winning the Illinois Indoor Tournament title on February 16, the Illinois State soccer team competes in its first outdoor competition of the spring Saturday, hosting the Illinois State Invitational at Adelaide Street Field.
The tournament features the Missouri Valley Conference champion Redbirds taking on Valparaiso at 10:30 a.m., followed by Saint Louis and Indiana State at noon. The winners of the two contests will meet in the championship game, immediately after the third-place game, slated to start at 2:30 p.m.
Its going to be a great day with everyone getting a lot of playing time, Redbird head coach Pete Kowall said. We have never played Saint Louis before, and it would be nice to play them if given the opportunity. This part of the season helps us evaluate what we need to work on for the fall.
The Illinois State lineup has been plagued by injuries this spring with Lauren Kahlenbeck, Lynley Hilligoss, Heather Forsyth, Katie Long and Robyn Brady sidelined.
We really wont know who we have until tomorrow, Kowall said. We have been doing lots of training, and our kids are anxious to play against someone else.
