The University of Illinois Springfield men's soccer team heads into the last home weekend of conference play looking to stay top of the GLVC. The Prairie Stars face Missouri-St. Louis on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. to celebrate Senior Night, and McKendree on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

UIS (9-1-3, 8-0-1)

UIS is currently 1st in the GLVC with a three point lead over Lewis. The Prairie Stars are also ranked 14th in the latest United Soccer Coaches National Poll. 

Friday night the Prairie Stars traveled to Liberty, Missouri to face William Jewell. In a tight match with few chances, both defenses held strong as the match finished 0-0. UIS outshot Jewell 8-2 as both registered 2 shots on goal. 

Sunday afternoon against Rockhurst was another intense game that did not feature many chances for either side. In the second-half the Prairie Stars started to control the game with more possession throughout the field. The lone goal of the game came from Joe Conway crossing a ball to what looked to be a wide-open Furkan Yalcin in the box, who was taken down from behind before he had a chance to shoot. The ensuing penalty kick was converted by Riccardo Sandulli in the 85th minute as the Stars escaped Kansas City with three more points. UIS outshot Rockhurst 10-3 with a 5-0 advantage in shots on goal. With this result, UIS officially set a new program-best shutout streak of nine games.

 

Missouri - St. Louis (2-7-2, 1-7-1)

UMSL currently is near the bottom of the GLVC table with four points on the year.

On Friday night against Upper Iowa the Tritons slumped to another conference loss. The Peacocks started the scoring in the 34th minute. UIU increased their lead to 2-0 in the 63rd minute. UMSL's pressure finally paid off as the Tritons scored with 17 seconds left from Bobby Boone. This goal wasn't enough as Upper Iowa won the match 2-1. UMSL held the slight advantage in shots with it being 12-11, but UIU led in shots on goal 4-3. 

Sunday afternoon saw another tough opponent in Truman State welcomed to Don Dallas Field in St. Louis. In a back-and-forth game, both teams had numerous chances to score, but it remained scoreless until the 71st minute when Corbin Clay put the Bulldogs ahead. The scoreline would stay 1-0 in favor of TSU as UMSL fell to their seventh-straight defeat. UMSL outshot TSU 10-7 with a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal. 

Two Tritons in Devin Livingstone and Luca Saewe have scored 3 goals on the year. Bobby Boone and Ty Gordon have chipped in with 2 goals of their own. Bobby Boone, JT Goldstein, and Jack Meuse have all registered 2 assists on the year. 

UIS vs. UMSL History

UIS holds an all-time record of 5-9-2 against the Tritons. UIS has a 5-0-2 record in the last seven meetings between the two schools. Last year's matchup saw the Prairie Stars win 1-0 as Anton Aduwa-Emovon scored the winner. 

 

McKendree (7-1-5, 5-1-3)

McKendree is currently 4th in the GLVC standings after picking up four points last weekend. 

Friday night was a close match that featured very few chances. McKendree held a slight advantage in shots, 6-5, but TSU had more shots on goal, 5-3. This scoreless draw was the third of the night around the GLVC. 

On Sunday against Upper Iowa, the Bearcats were powered by two first-half goals to notch another victory on the year. The first goal came from Gabe Hallsten in the 25th minute. The Bearcats extended their lead in the 41st minute as Jack Hynes netted his first goal of the season. McKendree had the majority of the shots, 10-2, but only had a 3-2 advantage in shots on goal in the match. 

The Bearcats have an extremely balanced attack, as thirteen different players have scored on the season. Only Rhys Davies, Jay Sangha, Phillipp Schmidt, and Chris Moore have 2 goals on the year. Rhys Davies and Matteo Schubert lead the team with 3 assists. 

The Bearcats travel to Quincy on Friday night before playing in Springfield on Sunday.

UIS vs. McKendree History

UIS holds an all-time record of 34-15-4 against the Bearcats. The last Prairie Stars win came in 2018. Last year's matchup ended 1-1 in an entertaining matchup. Max Tweddle scored the lone goal that day. 

 

Up Next

The Stars hit the road again for their last conference matches of the year against Lewis (10/27) and Indianapolis (10/29).