NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State (5-5-1) rides a three-game unbeaten streak into its first Missouri Valley Conference game against Evansville (5-2-2) Saturday night at 7 p.m. Conference play begins all around the MVC this weekend. The Purple Aces are currently in second place in the Valley with the Redbirds in fourth place.
The Redbirds posted a 4-0-2 MVC record last season and on the regular season title. ISU head coach Drew Roff knows how significant conference games are and is confident that the Redbirds are well prepared after a challenging beginning to the season.
"We are very excited to begin conference play on Saturday," said Roff. "Evansville is a very dangerous offensive team, so hopefully our non-conference schedule has prepared us for what lies ahead. We only play a total of six conference games, so each one is very important. I feel that we are hitting our stride at the right time of the season and we know that we will have to be at our best to get the result we are looking for."
Illinois State is 5-3-2 in MVC openers all-time, including a 2-0 win over Indiana State last season. The Redbirds have faced Evansville three times to open the conference season, posting a 1-1-1 record. The Redbirds haven't won a conference opener at Black Beauty Field.
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Evansville, 6-5-3. Six of the games have been decided in overtime. Over the last eight meetings, ISU has posted a 5-1-2 record against Evansville and outscored the Purple Aces, 17-4.
