University of Minnesota Athletics
Golden Gophers Fall to No. 10 Illinois
10/7/2006 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
The University of Minnesota soccer fell to 10th-ranked Illinois, 3-0, on Friday night in Champaign, Ill. Despite a second half of sustained pressure on the defensive side of the ball, a series of three first half goals sealed the Gophers’ fate.
Illinois came out on the attack from the opening kickoff, taking a 1-0 lead just six and a half minutes into the game. A ball crossed from the left side of the field led to a scramble inside the Gophers’ 18-yard box. Eventually the ball fell to Illinois forward Courtney Bell, whose one-time effort beat a diving Chelsey Turner in the Minnesota goal to the right corner of the net.
The Illini continued to press for another goal, and it would eventually come in the 28th minute. The goal once again came from the foot of Bell, who managed to elude a Minnesota defender inside the box and fire a shot to the top right corner of the goal off of Turner’s hands.
The final goal of the match came in the 36th minute off of a corner kick. The ball came out to an Illinois attacker 12 yards out who headed the ball on to forward Jessica Bayne running through the six-yard box. Bayne’s flick from 3 yards out found its way through traffic to back of the net.
With little to lose, the Gophers came out in the second half pushing numbers into the attack and battling for every loose ball. Their effort was rewarded by a series of quality scoring opportunities. In the 55th minute, forward Lindsey Schwartz ran at the Illinois defense and took a blistering shot from 20 yards out that sailed just inches wide of the right post. In the 81st minute, Schwartz found room for another strike on target, this time from just inside the 18-yard box on the left side. Her powerful strike was pushed aside by a diving Lindsey Carstens in the Illinois goal, and Elena Fruci was just inches away from putting home the rebound.
The Gophers got one final opportunity to find the back of the net in the 87th minute. Marti Klinsing broke in behind the Illinois defense on the right side of the 18-yard box and sent a driven ball across to Renee de St. Aubin positioned at the top of the six-yard box. The Illinois goalkeeper read the play well, however, and smothered the ball at de St. Aubin’s feet before she was able to get a touch on the ball.
The loss drops the Gophers to a record of 0-5-0 in the Big Ten and 6-6-1 overall on the year. The Golden Gophers will look for their first Big Ten win on Sunday as they travel to Iowa City to play border-rival Iowa. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
Illinois came out on the attack from the opening kickoff, taking a 1-0 lead just six and a half minutes into the game. A ball crossed from the left side of the field led to a scramble inside the Gophers’ 18-yard box. Eventually the ball fell to Illinois forward Courtney Bell, whose one-time effort beat a diving Chelsey Turner in the Minnesota goal to the right corner of the net.
The Illini continued to press for another goal, and it would eventually come in the 28th minute. The goal once again came from the foot of Bell, who managed to elude a Minnesota defender inside the box and fire a shot to the top right corner of the goal off of Turner’s hands.
The final goal of the match came in the 36th minute off of a corner kick. The ball came out to an Illinois attacker 12 yards out who headed the ball on to forward Jessica Bayne running through the six-yard box. Bayne’s flick from 3 yards out found its way through traffic to back of the net.
With little to lose, the Gophers came out in the second half pushing numbers into the attack and battling for every loose ball. Their effort was rewarded by a series of quality scoring opportunities. In the 55th minute, forward Lindsey Schwartz ran at the Illinois defense and took a blistering shot from 20 yards out that sailed just inches wide of the right post. In the 81st minute, Schwartz found room for another strike on target, this time from just inside the 18-yard box on the left side. Her powerful strike was pushed aside by a diving Lindsey Carstens in the Illinois goal, and Elena Fruci was just inches away from putting home the rebound.
The Gophers got one final opportunity to find the back of the net in the 87th minute. Marti Klinsing broke in behind the Illinois defense on the right side of the 18-yard box and sent a driven ball across to Renee de St. Aubin positioned at the top of the six-yard box. The Illinois goalkeeper read the play well, however, and smothered the ball at de St. Aubin’s feet before she was able to get a touch on the ball.
The loss drops the Gophers to a record of 0-5-0 in the Big Ten and 6-6-1 overall on the year. The Golden Gophers will look for their first Big Ten win on Sunday as they travel to Iowa City to play border-rival Iowa. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
Players Mentioned
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