VALPARAISO, Ind. – Illinois State soccer picked up its fourth straight draw with a 0-0 tie against Valparaiso on Thursday evening at Brown Field.
The Redbirds' streak of four draws is the longest in program history. With the draw, the Redbirds picked up back-to-back draws in conference play for the first time in school history. With the draw, Illinois State and Valparaiso have recorded a draw in three of the last four meetings between the two programs.
The scoreless draw marks the Redbirds sixth shutout of the season surpasses the most in a season under head coach Raleigh DeRose. Redshirt Madi Valenti picked up her 10th career shutout and moves to sixth all-time in program history for career shutouts, matching Andrea Shaw's (2003-06) career total.
The Redbirds pressed in the opening minutes of the contest as Freshman Rylann Law forced a save from the Valpo keeper with a shot in the 2nd minute of the contest. In the opening 20 minutes of the contest, Illinois State would outpace Valparaiso in shots, 3-1.
Moments later, as the end of the half approached, the Beacons would find an opportunity on a counter-attack, but Valenti would make a crucial save in the 38th minute to keep the score level at 0-0. Entering the break, the Redbirds would lead in the shot total, 7-4.
The Redbirds maintained their pressure in the second half with a 10-1 shot advantage in the final frame, including a 9-0 advantage in the final 15 minutes of play. In the closing 10 minutes, Junior Aniya Seymore and Law each would have a shot on target, which would force a pair of saves from the Beacon goalkeeper. Despite the pressure from Illinois State wouldn't be able to find a winning goal as the game ended level at 0-0.
With 17 shots in the contest, the Redbirds have tallied at least 16 or more shots for the fifth time this season.
UP NEXT
The Redbirds return to Adelaide Street Field for a contest with Southern Illinois on Sunday, September 28th. Kick off is set for 1 p.m. and will be available to stream on ESPN+.
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