NORMAL, Ill. – Thursday night could not have gone much better for the Illinois State soccer team. Playing under the newly-installed lights at Adelaide Street Field, the Redbirds scored a whopping eight goals and shutout Idaho on their way to an 8-0 win to close out the regular season.
The only thing that didn't cooperate was the weather, as rain fell steadily for the first half of the match. The rain and the cold didn't deter a crowd of 300-plus who showed up to watch ISU in the regular season finale. Fans were rewarded with a show.
The wet surface took some getting used to, but once ISU figured it out the goals came in bunches. Hannah Leinert scored the first goal of the match with a left-footed rocket inside the box in the 12th minute. Gabbi McArtor assisted Leinert on the play.
In the 22nd minute, Kelli Zickert scored on a rebound for her fourth goal of the season. The initial shot attempt was blocked, but it came right to Zickert who seized the opportunity, and gave the Redbirds a 2-0 advantage.
ISU closed out the half with a flurry of goals, starting in the 32nd minute. Off a corner kick, Brooke Ksiazek netted her second goal of the season. Both of Ksiazek's goals have come off of corner kicks this season. In the 35th minute, Emily Dickman scored and, once again, it came by way of a corner kick.
After a handball in the box in the 39th minute, Keri Kujawa buried the penalty kick and ISU went to the half up 5-0. It was the largest halftime lead of the season for the Redbirds and they added to it in the second half.
Within a span of 10 minutes, Zickert, Leinert and Kujawa all scored again with Rachel Tejada, Zickert and Lauren Koehl assisting the goals, respectively. The 8-0 lead would hold for the game as ISU keepers Aryn Newsom and Vanessa Niestrom combined for five saves.
Leinert's two goals give her nine on the season while Zickert is now at five and Kujawa is at four. Dickman's goal brings her season total to five. 22 different Redbirds saw action in the game and 11 took at least one shot. Zickert led all players with five shots. ISU outshot Idaho 25-9 for the game.
The eight goals are tied for the second-highest total in program history and the team's 20 points on the night rank third all-time in a single game.
ISU finishes the season 13-5-0 and 6-0-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Redbirds were 8-1 at home, outscoring their opponents 30-8 at Adelaide Street Field. It's safe to say there's no place like home, and ISU will enjoy the MVC Tournament at home for the first time in program history.
ISU holds the number one seed in the tournament and will host the winner of fourth-seeded Northern Iowa and fifth-seeded Missouri State Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. Drake and Loyola will play in the other quarterfinal for the right to play second-seeded Evansville at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 7.
The championship match is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 9 and all three matches from the title game and semifinals will be broadcast live on ESPN3. All-session and single-session tickets are now available for purchase online at www.GoRedbirds.com/tickets, by calling (309) 438-8000 or in-person at either Illinois State Athletics Ticket Office located at the North entrance of Redbird Arena or the East entrance of Hancock Stadium.
GoRedbirds.com:Â Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
