The University of Illinois Springfield men's soccer team earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Division II Tournament this week. The Prairie Stars get to extend an historic season for their NCAA era with their first-ever NCAA bid.
 
UIS is the fourth-seed out of the 10-team Super Region Three bracket. The Prairie Stars receive a first-round bye, and will face fifth-seed Maryville on Sunday. That game will be at 1 p.m. in Kiwanis Stadium in Springfield, Ill.
 
UIS was a finalist in last week's GLVC championship tournament. The Prairie Stars defeated Missouri-St. Louis in the opening round, advanced over Maryville in penalty kicks in the semifinals, and fell to Indianapolis in the championship match.
 
UIS will enter the national tournament with a 12-5-2 overall record. The 12 victories are the most for the program since 2003. The Prairie Stars were runner-up in the GLVC regular season with a program-record 10-2-1 conference mark.
 
The Prairie Stars have scored 29 goals in 19 games this season. Defensively, they have allowed just 19 scores. UIS has given up just two or more goals in a game four times on the year.
 
UIS is led offensively by Browel Some, Lars Brinkman, and Conal Gallagher. That trio has 15 of the team's goals, and a combined six assists. Pijus Petkevicius, a second-team all-GLVC goalkeeper, has seen the most action in goal. He has a 0.99 GAA and a .742 save percentage. Marvin Zott. Drew Keller, Terence Bynoe, and Morgan Ratcliffe are the top players who help anchor the back line for the Prairie Stars.

Each individual GLVC school will determine their own attendance policy for men's soccer. Please check the policies of the home teams if interested in attending a contest. (Illinois Springfield)
 
UIS vs. Maryville
Date/Time/Location: Sunday, November 21, 1:00 p.m. – Springfield, Ill.
Streaming: https://www.glvcsn.com/uis
Live Stats: http://uisprairiestars.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary   
All-Time Series: UIS leads 9-5-3
 
Maryville is ranked 12^th in the latest NCAA Division II national poll. The Saints are 13-3-3 overall, including 9-1-2 in their last 12 contests.
 
Maryville finished third in the GLVC this year, and was a semifinalist in the conference tournament. It was eliminated by UIS by a 4-2 score in the penalty kick shootout.
 
The Saints have similar stats as the Prairie Stars as both teams have played 19 games. Maryville has one fewer goal, and it has allowed three less scores
 
Mirza Hasecic is the team's top offensive threat with seven goals this season. Ricardo Andrade has a team-high eight assists. The team's top goalkeeper is Nick Hemann. He has a 0.76 GAA and a .766 save percentage.
 
UIS is 9-5-3 against Maryville all-time, including 4-2-2 in Springfield, Ill. The Prairie Stars have lost just twice to the Saints in their last nine meetings
 
Earlier This Season
UIS opened up its GLVC season this season with a 1-0 victory over Maryville at Lee Field in Springfield, Ill. UIS's Conal Gallagher scored the game's only goal in the 27^th minute. Maryville had a slight edge in shots at 12-10, including 3-2 in shots on goal.
 
In the first rematch in the GLVC Tournament, the two teams tied 1-1 in Indianapolis, Ind. UIS again scored first, this time on a Brian Riordan goal in the 34^th minute, with an assist from Diego Alcaraz. Maryville answered in the 75^th minute. In the penalty kick shootout, UIS goalkeeper Anree Bogart made a save on Mayville's second attempt, and the Saints also missed their third shot off the crossbar. Maryville outshot UIS 12-6 in that game, including 4-3 in shots on goal.
 
Up Next
The winner of Sunday's match will take on the winner of the Indianapolis site which includes the top-seed Indianapolis, eighth-seed Cedarville, and ninth-seed Ohio Dominican. That match will be on Dec. 2 or Dec. 3 at a site to be determined later.