NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State soccer team (13-5-0) will matchup against No. 15 Milwaukee (18-2-0) in the first round of the 2011 NCAA Women's Soccer Championships at Engelmann Stadium in Milwaukee, Wis., Saturday, Nov. 12 at 7:00 p.m. CST. The Redbirds defeated the Panthers, 3-1, earlier this season at Adelaide Street Field (Oct. 23).
ISU will be making its third NCAA Tournament appearance when it continues postseason play Saturday and its second under current head coach Drew Roff. Illinois State punched its ticket to 64-team field with an impressive, 5-0, win over Missouri State in the championship match of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
The Redbirds enter NCAA Tournament play on a seven-match winning streak and are averaging a program-best 3.11 goals per game. Freshman Rachel Tejada continues to rewrite the record books, as she has scored an ISU and Valley single-season record 21 goals and has added nine assists for 51 points. Tejada was named the MVC Most Valuable Player and Freshman Player of the Year earlier this season, and is the first player in program history to reach the 50-point mark in a single season.
Senior Jessica Carlson and sophomore Kyla Cross have also played key roles for the ISU offense. Carlson established a new single-season assists record with 10 and currently ranks second on the team with 24 points. Cross is second on the team with eight goals, and was named the Valley Tournament Most Valuable Player after finding the net four times in Illinois State's two MVC Tournament contests.
Milwaukee, the Horizon League regular-season and tournament champions, has suffered just two defeats this season, with one coming to ISU and the other to No. 10 Marquette. Three-time Horizon League Player of the Year Sarah Hagen leads the Panthers with 56 points on 24 goals and eight assists.
Carlson, Tejada and sophomore Anna Stinson combined for the trio of goals in ISU's 3-1 victory over Milwaukee earlier this season, while Krissy Dorre netted the lone goal for the Panthers. Milwaukee outshot the Redbirds, 19-16, but redshirt goalkeeper Aryn Newsom made five saves to earn the win in goal.
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