LIBERTY, MO- The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) men's soccer team blanked William Jewell College with a 1-0 victory during Friday's Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) opener.

"I'm obviously happy with the clean sheet," UIS coach Adam Hall said. "We had to battle for it. William Jewell made us earn it."

Tommy Geile produced a shutout for the Prairie Stars (1-2, 1-0). The senior goalkeeper from O'Fallon, MO established the UIS Division II school record with six career shutouts.

"Finding out that I am the career shutouts leader is amazing to hear, but it is a testament to all of us players coming together to grind for 90 minutes," Geile acknowledged. "It takes 11 guys to defend in a game and I owe it to them for always putting their all in every game."

Rhys Wallace delivered the only goal of the contest after capitalizing on a penalty kick during the 74th minute. The junior defender from Kilmarnock, Scotland has provided two goals for the Prairie Stars this season.

"It was also great to get my second goal of the season for UIS," Wallace commented.

William Jewell (0-1, 0-1) displayed a strong defensive effort, holding the Prairie Stars to one shot in the first half.

"It was a hard game to start. William Jewell made it difficult for us throughout the contest."

During the 17th minute, the Cardinals created a one-on-one situation, but their shot went high. William Jewell made a throw in during the 20th minute. A couple of headers resulted into a loose ball. Aaron Froehlich took the shot, but Geile sent the ball into the post and the ball went wide.

After familiarizing themselves with the turf field, the Prairie Stars were able to adjust for the second half.

"We played better in the second half," Hall stated. "I think we still have room for improvement but it's a great way to start the GLVC season."

"In the second half, we seemed to calm down and keep the ball better, which helped us create more chances compared to the first half," Wallace continued.

After getting fouled in the goalie box, Wallace was awarded a penalty kick. Wallace lined up and put UIS on the board.

"Rhys is having a great start to the season, but I want to congratulate all of the players," Hall commented. "They have responded well to last week's disappointments."

Trailing by a score, the Cardinals brought a highly aggressive offensive to the field in the final 10 minutes, but the UIS defense prevented the Cardinals from getting a shot off.

"During the last 10 minutes, I thought we were brilliant defensively," Wallace recounted. "As a whole, it was a great team performance."

William Jewell outshot UIS by a 6-to-5 margin.

Wallace, Dan Mahony, Will Teichman each contributed a shot on target for the Prairie Stars. Jordan Lindsey tallied two shots on goal for William Jewell while Froehlich notched another shot on target.

William Jewell goalkeeper rejected two of the three shots he faced.

"It was a hard-fought game and William Jewell really battled throughout," Geile said. "We were able to start attacking them in the second half and we were rewarded for it with the win."

UIS faces Truman State University (1-3, 0-1) on Sunday at 12 p.m. in Kirksville, MO.

PRAIRIE STAR NOTES: Geile ranks second in UIS Division II history with 177 career saves.