Illinois State soccer travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for a critical Missouri Valley Conference matchup against Drake in the Redbirds' final regular-season road contest. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT Sunday at Mediacom Stadium, with the match streaming on ESPN+.
SERIES BREAKDOWN
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Saturday's match will be the Redbirds' 30th all-time meeting with the Bulldogs.
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Illinois State holds a 14-12-3 advantage in the series.
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Illinois State holds a 5-7-2 away record against Drake, with the last match in Des Moines -- also the most recent matchup in the series -- ending in a 1-0 Redbird victory on Nov. 6, 2025, in the MVC semifinals.
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Drake is currently unbeaten at home this season (7-0-1).
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Drake holds a 10-3-3 overall record and is still unbeaten in conference play at 5-0-2.
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Drake leads the MVC and ranks in the top-25 nationally in goal differential (23), goals-against average (0.625), total assists (40) and total points (106).
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Angela Gutierrez poses an attacking threat for the Bulldogs, leading the conference in game-winning goals (5), total goals (10) and total points (25).
QUICK KICKS
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With two regular season games remaining, the Redbirds currently sit third in the MVC standings with 14 points, three points behind Drake and four points behind Southern Illinois. The Redbirds are guaranteed a spot in the six-team MVC Tournament.
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Illinois State is coming off a 2-2 draw against Evansville, in which the Redbirds scored twice in the final six minutes. The draw marked Illinois State's first time overcoming a 2-0 deficit to earn a result since Sept. 22, 2019, when the Redbirds rallied for a 3-2 win over Stetson.
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Sophomore Sosi Dadekian scored her third penalty kick goal of the season with 27 seconds left to tie the match with Evansville. The goal moved Dadekian into a tie for third in program history with three career penalty-kick goals.
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Dadekian's three penalty kicks this season lead the MVC and are also tied for the most in a single season in Illinois State history, marking the program's highest single-season total since Annie Wayland recorded three in 2001.
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Illinois State extended its home unbeaten streak to 15 games, moving into sole possession of third place in program history and tying for the fifth-longest active home unbeaten streak in Division I as of Oct. 26.
SOSI FROM THE SPOT
On Sunday against Evansville, Illinois State posted a comeback for the ages. The Redbirds were trailing 2-1 with 27 seconds remaining when a Purple Aces handball in the box awarded Illinois State a penalty kick. Defender Sosi Dadekian stepped to the spot and converted her third penalty kick of the season to even the match 2-2.
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The goal moved Dadekian into a tie for third in program history with three career penalty-kick goals.
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Dadekian's three penalty kicks this season are tied for the most in a single season in Illinois State history and mark the program's highest single-season total since Annie Wayland recorded three in 2001.
SPARKED BY SAMMI
The Redbirds faced a two-goal deficit in the 85th minute against Evansville last Sunday, but fifth-year Sammi Cenek refused to give up. Just 39 seconds after the Purple Aces extended their lead, Cenek scored her first goal of the season, marking the fourth-fastest response goal in program history. Cenek immediately rallied her teammates to keep pushing as time dwindled, helping fuel Illinois State's late surge. The Redbirds capped the comeback with a penalty kick with 27 seconds remaining to secure a 2-2 draw.
WHERE DO THE BIRDS STAND?
With two regular-season games remaining, Illinois State sits third in the MVC standings with 14 points, three behind Drake and four behind Southern Illinois. The three teams are the only squads to have clinched a berth in the conference tournament, though no teams have been eliminated. The Redbirds have secured a tournament spot but can still finish with a seed anywhere from first to fifth. The top six teams qualify for the tournament, with the top two seeds earning a bye into the semifinals.
PETRIE'S ALWAYS PLAYING
Defender Grace Petrie never takes a play off. The sophomore has played every single minute of every game this season (16 games, 1440 minutes). She is one of four field players in the MVC this season to have played every minute of every game, joining Abbey Macdonald of Murray State and Izzie Ryan and Lindley Amick from Evansville.
WATSON DOES IT ALL
Ava Watson is the definition of a two-way player, with her presence felt on both sides of the ball all season long for the Redbirds Watson, a defender out of Dublin, Ohio, scored her team-leading fifth goal of the season, making her the first Redbird to reach that mark since Haley Glover scored six goals in 2023.
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She is the first ISU defender to reach five goals in a season since Heather Forsyth scored eight in 2005.
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She is the only defender in the MVC this season with at least five goals.
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Along with her goal-scoring ability, Watson's stout defense has helped ISU to seven total shutouts this season, including a stretch of three straight against MVC opponents.
