NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State soccer is set to travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa, for a road contest against UNI on Saturday afternoon. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. and will be available to watch on ESPN+
Saturday's meeting with the Panthers marks the 29th meeting in the all-time series. The Redbirds hold the advantage with an 18-9-1 record all-time. In Cedar Falls, the series is tied at 4-4-0.
Last Sunday, the Redbirds posted their eighth shutout of the season with their 0-0 draw against Evansville at Adelaide Street Field. The shutout total is the most in a season under head coach Raleigh DeRose and ranks eighth most in the nation.
With the draw, Illinois State also extended its unbeaten streak to six games, the best streak for the Redbirds since 2019. In its first four conference games, Illinois State has gone four games unbeaten, which is the best streak to open the Missouri Valley Conference season since 2019.
On Tuesday, the MVC league office announced that Freshman Grace Petrie received Freshman of the Week recognition after her performance against Evansville on Sunday. Petrie becomes the fifth different Illinois State player to her a weekly honor and marks the sixth straight week the Redbirds have had a representative in the MVC weekly award selection. Petrie logged all 90 minutes and played a pivotal role in preserving the Redbirds' shutout in Sunday's contest. Petrie has been crucial in the Illinois State back line and leads all freshmen with 1191 minutes played this season.
The Panthers enter Saturday's meeting after recording their first conference win of the season with a 2-1 victory over Valparaiso on Oct. 4. Sophomore Haylee Braun tallied a brace in UNI's victory and earned MVC Player of the Week honors, joining Petrie as student-athletes to be recognized on Tuesday. UNI is led by first-year head coach Alex Place Thomas, who has been serving in an interim role since June.
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