The Illinois Springfield women's soccer team has built great momentum heading into a key home weekend at Kiwanis Stadium. The Prairie Stars went 2-0 on the road last week and have moved into the top 10 of the GLVC standings with eight points on the season. UIS will host Maryville on Friday, Oct. 17, at 5:00 p.m. and McKendree on Sunday, Oct. 19, at 12:00 p.m. at Kiwanis Stadium.

Friday night's matchup is the team's #WeAreStars game — a celebration of Prairie Stars across the athletic department coming together to support one another and energize the home crowd.

Illinois Springfield (3-6-3, 2-5-2 GLVC)
UIS earned a 2-0 shutout at Lincoln on Friday night in Jefferson City. Mallory Herber put the Prairie Stars on the board first, and Reese Lowery followed with her first career goal — an unassisted rocket that sealed the win. The UIS attack has been clicking at a high rate, generating consistent scoring opportunities.

Sunday's match at Missouri-St. Louis told a different story, with UIS outshot 21-7 but showing resilience. Goalkeeper Gigi Yurevich made six saves in the defensive effort that helped secure the 1-0 victory and earned her GLVC Defensive Player of the Week honors. Herber's penalty kick in the 61st minute stood as the lone goal, giving UIS back-to-back wins for the first time this season.

Heading into the weekend with home-field advantage, UIS trails Maryville 4-13 and McKendree 1-15 in the all-time series.

Maryville (6-1-4, 4-1-3 GLVC)
Maryville, ranked as high as No. 11 nationally earlier this season, recently fell out of the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 but remains the No. 5 team in the Midwest Region, one spot ahead of McKendree.

The Saints tied crosstown rival UMSL 1-1 on Friday night in a physical match that featured several cautions. UMSL outshot Maryville 14-7, but the Saints struck first in the third minute before conceding the equalizer in the 63rd.

Maryville then suffered its first loss of the season on Sunday, falling 4-1 to McKendree at home. Despite leading in shots (14-8) and shots on goal (8-6), the Saints struggled to contain the Bearcats' early attack and dropped to fifth in the GLVC standings.

McKendree (7-1-4, 7-1-1 GLVC)
McKendree also saw its unbeaten streak end last weekend in a 1-0 road loss at UMSL. The Tritons scored late in the first half after the initial shot was deflected, then finished on the rebound by Maddie Clark. UMSL outshot McKendree 18-12, continuing to pepper every opponent in the conference, even a defense as strong as the Bearcats'. Goalkeeper Peyton Baker made five saves in the loss as McKendree's offense struggled to generate chances.

They bounced back in dominant fashion on Sunday, defeating Maryville 4-1 behind four goals assisted by Maggie Glecker. McKendree's fast start included three goals in the opening 23 minutes, keeping the Bearcats tied atop the GLVC standings with Quincy at 22 points.

GLVC Outlook
With three GLVC weekends left, the league race remains tight. Quincy and McKendree share the top spot with 22 points, while Drury and UMSL are close behind. Maryville and Lewis sit just outside the top four, each trying to solidify postseason position. UIS, now up to eight points, is within striking distance of the final tournament spots. Continued defensive composure and timely scoring could push the Prairie Stars into contention down the stretch.

Follow Along
Fans can catch both matches live on the GLVC Sports Network, with live stats available at uisprairiestars.com.