Redbird soccer midfielder Abby Basler was named Missouri Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week following her performances in Illinois State's two 3-1 victories last week over Indiana State and Evansville. The redshirt sophomore combined for two goals and an assist in the two matches, helping lift the Redbirds to their now three consecutive conference wins. This is the first time in her career Basler has received weekly conference honors and the sixth time this season a Redbird has done so.
In Wednesday's match versus the Sycamores, Basler was credited an assist on a corner, in which she sent in a well-placed ball for sophomore Natalie Vaughn-Low to put away and give the Redbirds a 1-0 early lead. It was Basler's third assist of her 2018 campaign and all three assists have been as a result of corner kicks.
On Sunday, Basler scored a brace in Evansville, recording the game winning goal in the 77th minute and an insurance goal less than 10 minutes later to secure the victory. It was the second multi-goal game of Basler's career, as the St. Louis native had previously recorded a hat trick against Chicago State in 2016. Basler has 11 points this season off of four goals and three assists.
UP NEXT:Â Illinois State will host Northern Iowa in the final match of the regular season on Thursday at Adelaide Street Field. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. and fans are encouraged to dress up and participate in a costume contest in honor of Halloween.
For all the latest on Illinois State soccer, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team at @Redbird_Soccer (Twitter, Facebook).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App:Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
