NORMAL, Ill. - Riding a three-game winning streak, its first of the season, the Illinois State women's soccer team hosts non-conference opponent Eastern Illinois on Thursday at 2 p.m. The `Birds then host Missouri State in the first round of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, Sunday at 12 p.m. at Adelaide Street Field.
The Redbirds, 6-7-3, 2-3-1 in the Valley, and the Panthers will square off in both teams' final regular-season contest. Eastern Illinois enters the game with a 6-6-5 overall record, and are 4-1-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference. EIU locked up the third-place seed for the OVC tournament on Oct. 22 with a 2-0 shutout of Jacksonville State.
Despite the hype surrounding Sunday's rematch with Missouri State, Illinois State head coach Pete Kowall believes his team is taking things one game at a time.
"We're looking forward to the EIU game and even though its non-conference, we would like to play well and win that game," said Kowall. "It will be a fun game because some of our players know some of their players. But, as with any other game, it's an opportunity for us to get better and prepare for Sunday. We're trying not to look too far ahead, though. Our focus is on Eastern since they are the next team on our schedule.
Illinois State leads the all time series with Eastern Illinois, 6-3-0, claiming victories in the last six meetings. In Charleston last season, the Redbirds garnered a 1-0 win, thanks to a late second-half goal by current Redbird midfielder Yvonne Northover.
The `Birds are undefeated at home against non-conference opponents in 2006, owning a 3-0-1 record on the year. Those three wins all came via shutouts, with ISU outscoring non-MVC competitors in those wins, 8-0, at Adelaide Street Field.
Ensuring home-field advantage for the first round of the conference tournament, the `Birds defeated Missouri State, 2-1, in the conference regular-season finale on Sunday, Oct. 22, to secure the No. 4 seed in tournament. In similar fashion, the Redbirds and the Bears will square off just one week later at Adelaide Street Field on Oct. 29 in the quarterfinals of the 2006 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. The winner of Sunday's contest will advance to the tournament semifinals in Omaha, Neb.
"The team is excited for Sunday's game with Missouri State," said Kowall. "Of course, the game comes with the opportunity to move on to the second round of the tournament in Omaha. I think we're playing better as a team and we intend to continue that play into Sunday. It's a great time of the year for our team to start peaking."
