NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State soccer team is set to host Western Illinois in the first of two exhibition matches before the 2015 season officially kicks off Aug. 21. The Redbirds welcome the Leathernecks to town for a 1 p.m. kickoff Tuesday at Adelaide Street Field.
ISU is under the direction of first-year head coach Eric Golz, after finishing 16-6 and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second-consecutive season in 2014. ISU went undefeated against Missouri Valley Conference opponents last season and won its fourth-consecutive MVC Tournament title.
The Redbirds begin the 2015 campaign with six new faces on the roster: five freshmen and one junior college transfer. Kelli Zickert is the top-returning scorer, after tallying 15 points last season, while Emily Dickman is top returning goal scorer after netting six as a freshman last year. Both players were named to the All-MVC Freshman Team and Zickert was named the MVC Freshman of the Year.
ISU returns two other All-MVC players in defender Abby Van Deventer and midfielder Brooke Ksiazek.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. and gates will open an hour and half prior to the kick.
How to follow along
Live stats will be carried on GoRedbirds.com via Stat Broadcast. In addition, game updates will be available on the team's Twitter account @Redbird_Soccer.
GoRedbirds.com:Â Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
