NORMAL, Ill. - Taking on two nationally ranked teams in a single weekend is a challenge that the Illinois State women's soccer team is ready to face, as the Redbirds host Saint Louis on Friday and travel to Columbus, Mo., on Sunday for a meeting with the Missouri Tigers.
The Redbirds return to Adelaide Street Field, Friday, after a three-game road trip to Ohio, Michigan and Indiana. Illinois State and Saint Louis, who comes in at No. 26 in the Soccer Buzz national polls, will kick off at 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on WZND, ISU's student radio station. The Redbirds are undefeated at home this season (2-0-1) and look to continue that streak on Friday.
With the all-time series with Saint Louis locked at 1-1-1, Friday's game will prove to be the tie-breaker. The teams met last season in St. Louis, as Illinois State fell to the Billikens, 2-1, in single overtime. The Redbirds are undefeated at home, however, against SLU, winning in 2004 and finishing in a 2-2 tie in 1996.
Sunday's game in Columbus, Mo., will be played at 1 p.m. at the Audrey J. Walton Complex. The game, which will be the first meeting in both programs' history, will also be both teams' final non-conference contest, as Illinois State opens the conference slate on Sept. 30 at Evansville.
In the Division I NSCAA/adidas national soccer poll, Mizzou is ranked No. 22 with its 7-1-0 record on the year. Additionally, the Tigers are ranked 17th nationally by Soccer Buzz magazine, down from a No. 12 nod last week. The fall was due to Missouri's first loss to UW-Milwaukee on Sept. 17.
