EAST LANSING – No. 14 Michigan State women’s soccer was victorious against the Illinois Fighting Illini, in a 2-1 win on a rainy Thursday evening at DeMartin Stadium.
The Spartans dominated possession from start to finish, with 33 shots to Illinois’ two.
“I thought especially in the first half we were really good at cutting out exits, as they kept trying to find their nines. We did a good job of cutting out entry passes,” MSU head coach Jeff Hosler said. “Raegan Cox and Celia [Gaynor] have a very good relationship going right now. It’s really fun to see two graduate seniors at the very end of their college career playing to what their potential has been and reaching it these last couple of weeks.”
In the 37th minute, Illinois would get on the board first, with a goal from senior forward Zoey Kollhoff off a deflection from a Spartan defender.
Shortly after, Kollhoff committed a penalty, sending Justina Gaynor to the box for a penalty kick. Gaynor sent the ball to the back left side of the net, tying the match up at 1-1.
In the 58th minute, senior midfielder Gabby Mueller fired a shot from outside the box into the back of the net, giving MSU the lead. This was Mueller’s fifth goal of the season.
“We challenged her [Gabby Mueller] at halftime about her final decisions. She drove in forward a moment before the goal with a good opportunity, and obviously it was a quality goal,” Hosler said. “She adds a different element to us because she can turn and get forward quickly and has the ability to score from distance.”
20 minutes later, play was halted after a series of deflections near Illinois’ net almost resulted in a goal. The play would go to video review, but was ruled a no goal.
MSU continued to hold on at the end with good blocks and deflections on the defensive side in rainy field conditions, ultimately pulling away in the 2-1 win.
MSU moves to second place in the Big Ten standings with 20 points. No. 4 Penn State sits above the Spartans with 21 points, after its 2-0 win over No. 19 Indiana on Thursday.
Michigan State will conclude the regular season on Sunday, Oct. 22 against Iowa. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. from DeMartin Stadium.
