Illinois Advances to Title Game With 2-0 Win
November 07, 2003 | Women's Soccer
The Illinois Fighting Illini took to the University of Wisconsin's McClimon Soccer Complex Friday with hopes of earning just their second ever Big Ten Tournament final appearance. In their way was a tough third-seeded Purdue squad, but Illinois controlled the game throughout and won the first semifinal match of the 2003 Big Ten Women's Soccer Tournament, 2-0.
The 12th-ranked and second-seeded Illini would have been happy with just a 1-0 win, but with one minute to play, Tara Hurless setup a breakaway for Jessica Bayne who then beat Purdue keeper Maureen Carey at the 89:24 mark to seal the win. Bayne scored from 10 yards out and was helped by Hurless who assisted on both Illini goals on Friday.
Hurless has proven to be the go-to player against the Boilermakers as she scored the lone goal in Illinois' 1-1 tie at Purdue during the regular season. Both teams entered Friday's match fired up, which was certainly a necessity as the temperature in Madison had fallen to 25 degrees, with a wind chill of 16 near the start of the game.
It was clear from the beginning that the game would feature two powerful offensive attacks. Illinois and Purdue were among the top five in the Conference in scoring during the regular season. In fact, the first shot on goal was fired by Illinois just 25 seconds into the game.
'This was a hard fought game tonight between two good attacking teams,' said Illinois head coach Janet Rayfield. 'We were really thankful to get out of the first half, but I thought if we could get on top in the second half then we would be tough to beat.'
After a scoreless first half, Illinois was entitled to a free kick, just seven yards behind the penalty box. Hurless then set up a cross shot from the left to an awaiting Meghan Kolze, who then drilled the ball just inside the far left post at the 54:40 mark to give Illinois a 1-0 lead.
Purdue continued to fight back throughout the second half, making several attempts to penetrate the Illini defense. The Boilermakers had two corner kicks late in the game, but were defended well by the Illini. In the 72nd minute, Kim Comsar's free kick to an open Annette Kent missed just wide.
While Purdue led in corner kicks, 6-1, the Illini outshot Purdue 13-7, including an 8-1 advantage in the second half. Illinois goalkeeper Lesia Alcia played all 90 minutes and recorded four saves, all of which came in the first half. Alcia 's counterpart, Purdue's Lauren Mason, played the majority of the game (87:07), but was rotated with Carey late in the game in an effort to stop the clock.
The Illini will now face the winner of Michigan and Wisconsin at 1:00 p.m. CT on Sunday. The championship final will be televised live on CSTV (DirecTV Channel 610). Illinois has never won the Big Ten Tournament, but did make its only championship final appearance back in 2001. The Illini dropped a 2-1 overtime heartbreaker to Penn State in the final.
Recap courtesy of Big Ten Conference (www.bigten.org)
