The Illinois State soccer team was tabbed to finish third in the 2019 Missouri Valley Conference Coaches Poll, as announced by the conference office Thursday, Aug. 15. Two Redbirds, junior Abby Basler and senior Kate Del Fava, were voted to the MVC Preseason All-Conference team.
ISU returns 22 players and 10 starters from the 2018 team that went 10-9-2 and advanced to the semifinals of the MVC Championships.
Loyola Chicago collected six of eight first-place votes to earn the top spot, finishing with 62 points. Drake was ranked second in the poll, grabbing one first-place vote and 55 points. Illinois State came in third, also receiving a first-place vote, and grabbing 49 points.
The eight-team poll was rounded out by Missouri State (37), UNI (33), Evansville (23), Valparaiso (15) and Indiana State (14).
Del Fava is a two-time All-MVC First Team selection who led the team in shots and tallied 13 points while averaging over 83 minutes played per match last season. The senior midfielder has played in every match for the Redbirds since stepping foot on campus in 2016, and has started in all but two games.
Basler collected All-MVC First Team and All-Tournament Team honors last season while starting in all 21 matches for the 'Birds. She led the squad in points (14) and assists (4). The junior midfielder was also named the MVC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 22, after scoring a brace at Evansville for her second multi-goal game of her career.
Both Basler and Del Fava recorded a team-high five goals during the 2018 campaign.
Illinois State opens the regular season on the road at Omaha on Aug. 23.
For all latest on Illinois State soccer, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team at @Redbird_Soccer (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).
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