Aug. 14, 2015
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NORMAL, Illinois — Junior Bri Toelle‘s goal in the 63rd minute sent the University of Iowa soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Illinois State on Friday night at Adelaide Street Field.
“It was a typical first exhibition game for us,” said head coach Dave DiIanni. “We have a lot of young athletes that are playing their first collegiate game, and our game kind of played out like that.”
Illinois State won the shot battle in the first half (5-4), but the Hawkeyes put the pressure on the Redbird defense with seven shots on goal in the second half.
“Illinois State did a great job of being aggressive and possessing the ball, and we did not handle their pressure very well,” said Dilanni. “I was very happy with our team and our adjustments in the second half. We had a lot of moments of possession and created some opportunities.”
It wasn’t until the 63rd minute that Toelle was able to get out in transition and score what was eventually the game-winning goal.
“I thought we had some very valuable minutes from a lot of different people, particularly our young players,” said Dilanni. “Morgan Kemerling, Jenna Kentgen, and Hannah Kousheh all played some really great minutes for us in their collegiate debut. They will need to carry us throughout the year.
“It’s a good starting point for us, but we have a long way to go. We have a lot of work to put in to be able to improve as a team, but we are eager to do so.”
Iowa opens the regular season at home against Pacific on Aug. 21 at 7 p.m. (CT), before hosting Nebraska Omaha for a 1 p.m. contest on Aug. 23.
