Liza Matimore from women's soccer against Millikin University

Women’s Soccer Set to Complete CCIW Slate at NCC

Game is scheduled for a 12 p.m. kickoff in Naperville

10/21/2022 12:00:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University women's soccer team will hit the road for one last College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin battle Saturday, Oct. 22. The CCIW Regular Season Champions, IWU, will compete against 19th ranked North Central College in Naperville, Ill. with a noon kick off. IWU's final bout of the conference slate, is directly followed by IWU's men's soccer team's crucial match against the Cardinals at 3 p.m. in Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium.

In the Titans' latest outing, a 6-0 victory over Elmhurst University Oct. 19, IWU clinched the regular season conference title for the second straight year. IWU, the no. 1 seed heading into post season play, earned a bye into the CCIW Tournament Semifinals Wednesday, Nov. 2 in Bloomington, Ill.

In the 2021 season, the Titans claimed a share of the title with Wheaton College, but are the outright winners with a 8-2-3 overall record and a 6-0-1 league standing. The regular season distinction marks the fifth time in program history that the Titans have claimed regular season champions status.

IWU and NCC are the only two teams so far who have clinched a spot in the postseason tournament as the schedule winds down to its final contests. The No. 19 Cardinals enter the match at 10-1-4 overall and 3-0-3 in the CCIW. Most recently, NCC faced Millikin University, Oct. 19 where the Cardinals and Big Blue ended the match in a 1-1 draw.

The Green and White close out its conference slate against NCC, while the Cardinals have two matches left in their league schedule. The Titans have been historically successful against the Cardinals as the all-time series is in favor of IWU, 26-3-1. Just last season the two squads met twice, once in regular season play and in the CCIW Tournament. Similarly, IWU traveled to Naperville, Ill. on Oct. 13 2021 for its conference contest and it was the Titans who came out with the 2-1 decision. IWU, the 2021 No. 2 seed going into the tournament, met NCC once again in the semifinal match back in Bloomington on Nov. 3. This time NCC came out on top against the Titans but were defeated in the championship game 2-0, against Wheaton.

In the CCIW rankings, IWU has multiple Titans within the top-10 leaderboards. In goals, senior Caelyn Steffens (Normal, Ill.-Normal Community) is first in the league with a total of 17 goals. Senior Lauren Shanks (Bloomington, Ill.-Central Catholic) and sophomore Liza Matimore (Gurnee, Ill.-Warren Township) join Steffens on the list as well. Shanks' eight goals is good for a three-way tie for fourth most goals, while Matimore is also in a three-way tie for fifth most goals with seven. All three Titans are also in the top-10 leaderboard for most points. Steffens ranks first with 36, Shanks is tied for fourth with 21, and Matimore follows close in fifth with a total of 19 points on the season.

In assists, the Titans have four student-athletes on the leaderboard, the most out of any other program. Senior Jenna Li (Haslett, Mich.-Lansing Christian) leads the Titans with six assists and sits second in the CCIW. Matimore and Shanks are also recognized for their five assists a piece for a third-ranking tie. Freshman Sawyer White (Downers Grove, Ill.-Montini Catholic) rounds out the top-10 with a total of four assists on the season, good for the fourth-highest assists recorded in the league.

Shanks, who is ranked in every offensive statistical category in the conference, is ranked first in the CCIW in game-winning goals with four. Defensively, IWU's goalkeeper Kayla Borg (McHenry, Ill.-Cary Grove) is ranked first in save percentage with a .821 clip, second in goals against average (.769), and first in most shutouts with a three-way tally of six.

The game will be available via live stats and live stream. Live stats can be accessed here while the live stream can be found here.

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