CHICAGO - Illinois State freshman Rachel Tejada scored her third goal of the afternoon in the 92nd minute to give ISU (3-2-0) a dramatic, 4-3, overtime against in-state rival DePaul (0-5-0) Sunday afternoon at Wish Field in Chicago. Tejada's hat trick was the first by a Redbird since Oct. 7, 2009.
Illinois State jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on Tejada's first goal in the 25th minute. Tejada collected a pass from senior Jessica Carlson at the top of the 18-yard box and drove a shot into the lower, right corner of the net.
Tejada doubled the ISU advantage on a breakaway goal in the 36th minute. The Troy, Ill., native used a burst of speed to push past a pair of Blue Demon defenders and slipped a ball inside the far post from eight yards out.
"DePaul was sending numbers forward and we felt we could have success in transition," head coach Drew Roff said. "We got the ball to our playmakers and let them create. Rachel scored a couple of early goals and we were hoping to go into halftime up 2-0, but that wasn't the case."
DePaul took advantage of a set piece late in the first half and took the momentum into halftime, after Amber Paul scored in the 41st minute. Paul collected a loose ball that came free after a scramble in front of the net on a corner kick service and volleyed it over the head of ISU keeper Mara Kremenovic for to cut the margin to 2-1.
The Blue Demons once again scored on a corner kick in the 54th minute to pull even at 2-2. Rebekah Boller delivered a corner kick service to the far post and Paul headed it home for her second goal of the contest.
The Redbirds regained the lead 74th minute on a corner kick goal of their own. Sophomore Anna Stinson drove a low, hard service to the center of the box and junior Mary Sahm was able to get a foot on it and beat the DPU goalkeeper on a shot to the upper, right corner.
DePaul converted on yet another corner kick late in the second half, when Boller found Ashleigh Goddard in the 81st minute to pull the Blue Demons even at 3-3. Goddard's tally would be the final goal of regulation and overtime would be needed to decide a winner.
"Set pieces were something we thought we were prepared for, but DePaul is a tough, athletic team that is tough to defend on corners," Roff said. "You have to give them a lot of credit and it is something we will have to work on, but the good thing is that we didn't give up a goal in the run of play."
Tejada wasted no time scoring her third goal of the afternoon, netting the game-winner less than two minutes into the extra period. She collected a loose ball in the center of the field, before dribbling to the corner of the 18-yard box and firing low drive inside the far post for her eighth goal of the season.
"We were creating a lot of chances in the regulation, we were just having trouble finding that final pass," Roff said. "In overtime, I figured it would take a long range shot or a quick combination. Rachel was able to get the ball, open up her body and finished it from distance."
Redshirt freshman Aryn Newsom played the final 55 minutes in goal for ISU to earn the win and improve to 2-1 on the season. Newsom made a pair of saves in the second half, including stopping a one-on-one opportunity midway through the second half.
Illinois State fired a total of 20 shots, including 14 in the second half. Tejada led ISU with eight, while Stinson and freshman Aimee Wronski each attempted five shots. Tejada leads the team with 20 points on eight goals and four assists, and has recorded multiple points in each of her first five collegiate games.
The Redbirds will look to push their winning streak to three games when they host Minnesota Friday at Adelaide Street Field. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m.
"Minnesota is a team that is very fast and has a lot of team speed," Roff said. "Last year, I feel they were the most athletic team that we played and we are going to have to play our best game yet to get the win against them."
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