The University of Illinois Springfield men's soccer team heads into the second weekend of conference play preparing for two road games. The Prairie Stars face conference newcomer Upper Iowa on Friday at 7:30 p.m., and travel to Truman State for a Sunday matchup at 12:00 p.m.

UIS (3-1-2)
UIS returns to the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 this week with a spot at No. 24. The Prairie Stars also move up to the number 3 spot regionally after a two win weekend at home. 

On Friday night against No. 7 Maryville, the Stars and Saints battled for the full 90 minutes in a contest with two of the top teams in the region. UIS edged the match in both shots and shots on goal, with 9 and 5 respectively, compared to Maryville's 8 and 4. The lone goal of the game was scored by Joe Conway in the 22nd minute off of Tjerk Huis winning the ball off of a Maryville defender. 

Sunday's matchup with Missouri S&T started in the best way possible for UIS as Junior Anton Aduwa-Emovon scored only 22 seconds into the match after Max Tweddle played him through on goal. The Prairie Stars never looked back from there as they tallied three more goals to complete the 4-0 rout of the Miners. Joe Conway scored in the 70th minute, tallying his 3rd goal of the campaign off of a Brian Riordan assist. Or Levinstein scored the final two goals of the game, just 50 seconds apart. UIS outshot the Miners 17-7 with a 7-1 advantage in shots on goal. 

This great weekend for the Stars was capped with Joe Conway receiving GLVC Offensive Player of the Week after his two-goal weekend. 

Upper Iowa (3-1-1)
Conference newcomers Upper Iowa played only one GLVC match last weekend against Truman State. The matchup ended in a 0-4 loss for the Peacocks. Truman State dominated the first half while Upper Iowa had the advantage in the second, with both teams recording 14 shots. A scuffle in the corner in the 62 minute resulted in three red cards being shown, two to Upper Iowa and one to Truman State. 

Three Peacocks have 2 goals on the year, Frider Blunck and Thomas Walle who will be out for the match versus UIS this Friday to serve a suspension. The Peacocks are currently undefeated at home on the year, with a 3-0-1 record.

UIS vs Upper Iowa History
This will be the third time that the teams have met, with this being the first GLVC matchup. Upper Iowa has won both of the previous meetings, coming in 2014 and 2015. 

Truman State (2-1)
Truman State looks to build from making their first ever GLVC Tournament appearance last season.

A 4-0 defeat of the Peacocks which included goals from four different players shows the improvement of the Bulldogs. Luke Payne, Corbin Clay, Jack Knust, and Sam Newton all scored for the Bulldogs, while Landon Keisker recorded two assists along the way. The game that saw Truman State shoot 14 times, with 10 shots being on target, became very competitive in the second half as Upper Iowa increased the pressure. 

Luke Payne and Sam Newton currently lead the way for the Bulldogs, as both have 4 points recorded on the year. Truman State hosts Quincy on Friday night before welcoming the Stars on Sunday.

UIS vs Truman State History 
UIS currently holds a 6-2-1 record against the Bulldogs. Before the draw last year in Kirksville, the Prairie Stars had rattled off five consecutive wins. 

Up Next 
The Stars continue GLVC play with one away matchup in week three of conference play against in-state rival Quincy on Oct. 1.