Missouri soccer was back in action on Thursday, Sept. 4, facing the undefeated Illinois Fighting Illini. Coming into this game, the Tigers were 2-2-1 and ready to start a four-game home stand. Despite a good offensive showing, Missouri was defeated 2-0 after a pair of second-half goals from the Illini.   

Immediately following halftime, it was senior forward Lia Howard who scored the first goal of the game, with a well-placed ball into the bottom right corner of the net. This was Howard’s first goal interaction of the year and her ninth career goal. 

The Fighting Illini extended their lead to 2-0 13 minutes later, as sophomore forward Emma Yee dribbled through traffic and shot into the top left corner of the net from the edge of the box. The goal came shortly after an offensive flurry for the Tigers, with three shots in the span of a minute. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Izzy Lee saved all three attempts to keep the Tigers at bay. 

After the first 10 minutes, Illinois found some footing with two shots back-to-back by Yee and then graduate midfielder Sydney Stephens. Both were blocked by the Tigers’ defense, but three minutes later, it was senior defender Ellen Persson with a shot at the bottom left of the net, which was saved by Missouri junior goalkeeper Kate Phillips. 

Both teams entered the half with no goals, as both defenses had control over the game. Missouri’s sophomore forward Emily Derucki led the game in shots taken with two in the first period, yet she was subbed off in the 33rd minute. Derucki was also the Tigers’ lead contributor to their tally of seven fouls in the half, with two in her half hour of game time.

Following the game, head coach Stefanie Golan commented about the struggle offensively, saying, “We had some moments, but we could have done better with the opportunities that we had.” 

Edited by Colin Simmons l [email protected]

Copy edited by Avery Copeland | [email protected]

Edited by Alex Gribb | [email protected]