EVANSTON, Ill. — Illinois State battled to a 1-1 draw with Northwestern on Thursday night at Martin Field to remain unbeaten through the first four games of the season for the first time since 2012.
The draw also marks the Redbirds' first tie or win against a Power Four opponent since a 1-0 shutout over Pittsburgh on Sep. 3, 2017.
"I'm really proud of the resilience our girls showed tonight," said head coach Raleigh DeRose. "The game was certainly challenging against a talented opponent, but we continued to fight, compete and stay together on the road. This is the type of experience we've been working toward as a group, and we know this game will make us better as we prepare for conference play.
Eve Gricius nearly gave the Redbirds the lead just before halftime, putting Illinois State's first shot on goal toward the bottom right corner of the net at the 37:48 mark, but Northwestern goalkeeper CJ Roy made the save.
The Wildcats opened the scoring just over a minute later, taking a 1-0 lead on their ninth shot of the match.
Illinois State continued to battle and found its equalizer in the 73rd minute. Ava Watson sent a ball in from near the sideline to Gricius, who played it to Rowann Law. Law finished with her left foot into the bottom center of the net to tie the game and record her first goal as a Redbird.
Goalkeeper Madi Valenti was a wall in the second half, making a clutch save in the 79th minute to keep the game knotted at one and preserve the Redbirds' point against the Wildcats out of the Big Ten.
"I'm proud of both the collective performance and individual performances in big-time moments such as Rowann's goal and Madi making some incredible saves, especially in the second half," said DeRose.
UP NEXT
The Redbirds are back in action against Loyola Chicago on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT at Loyola Soccer Park.
