Illinois Wesleyan

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan University women's soccer team used an early lead to come away with a key, 3-nil, College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin win over Augustana College Wednesday, Oct. 21,  at Neis Field. The Green and White (8-2-5, 4-1-1 CCIW) blanked the Vikings (5-7-3, 0-5-1 CCIW) to earn three crucial points as the regular season draws closer to the end. 

A Titan was bumped to the ground in the fifth minute, drawing a free kick at the edge of the circle inside midfield. IWU sent junior Vanessa Gray (Burlington, Ontario, Canada-Dr. Frank J. Hayden) to the ball for the restart, looking for a big boot into the box, but instead Gray tucked a long kick under the crossbar for a highlight-worthy goal and a 1-nil lead.

Illinois Wesleyan doubled its lead with a penalty kick in the 29th minute, as freshman Peyton McMahon (Lakewood, Ill.-Crystal Lake Central) buried a shot to give the home team a 2-0 advantage into halftime.

The Titans closed the first half with 14 shots, six on goal while Augustana saw one shot, one on goal against strong Illinois Wesleyan defense.

In the 52nd minute, the Titans fired off back-to-back shots on goal, but both were saved. IWU kept up the pressure, registering the next three shots on goal over the ensuing 20 minutes. With just under ten minutes to play, junior Liza Wiley (Bloomington, Ind.-Home School) scored to provide IWU with an insurance tally. Wiley got the ball at the top of the box from senior Sophie Lampert (Hudson, Ill.-Normal West) and drilled a shot into the upper-90, expanding the lead to 3-0 to close the match.

The Titans had 25 shots with 12 on goal. IWU limited the Vikings to just four shots, two on target. Senior Adriana Ruffolo (Bloomingdale - Glenbard North) had one save in 45 minutes of action. Freshmen Lucy Gray (Evergreen Park, Ill.-Mother McAuley) and Rebecca Kunz (Plainview, N.Y.-Plainview Old Bethpage) combined for the other half of play. 

The Titans are back on Neis Field, Saturday, Oct. 24 at 1 p.m. to face off against Wheaton College. Live coverage of the event can be accessed here.