PITTSBURGH, Penn. – The Illinois State women's soccer team (2-3-1) defeated the Pittsburgh Panthers (3-1-2), 1-0, Sunday afternoon at Pitt.
"Extremely proud of the complete team effort displayed today," said head coach Brad Silvey. "We knew that  Pitt would require our best and our girls responded, everyone brought their best."
The Redbirds opened the match outshooting the Panthers seven to five and limited them to one shot on goal to the Redbirds' six. In the 43rd minute, senior Emily Dickman got the ball to space outside the 18 and freshman Sarah Lafayette was able to find the back of the net, giving ISU the 1-0 lead heading into the half. The goal is Lafayette's second of her career and second game-winning goal, as she also notched the game-winner against Illinois.
ISU continued their offensive dominance in the second half, finishing with nine shots on goal to Pitt's three. Sophomore keeper Haley Smith notched her second shutout of 2017 with the win, tallying three saves between the pipes. She also had some big moments outside the six, going one-on-one with the Pitt offense, coming out with the block every time.
"Our goalkeeping and defensive efforts were tremendous against a very fast, physical and dynamic attack," Silvey continued. "On the other end of the field our ability to link play through our midfield matched with some great movement allowed us to create plenty of scoring chances."
Fans can catch the Redbirds back in action next Sunday, September 10, when they travel to IUPUI to face the Jaguars at 12 p.m. CT. Everyone can follow along via Twitter, @Redbird_Soccer, for in-game action and updates from the road.
"Looking ahead, we must do a better job of finishing our goal-scoring opportunities. We have plenty of talent, but we need to develop a confident and assertive mentality inside our opponent's penalty area," said Silvey.
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