Chambana Sun

The Illinois women's soccer team is set to face Maryland in a Big Ten Conference match on Sunday, October 5. The game will take place at Ludwig Field with kickoff scheduled for 11 a.m. CT.

Illinois enters the matchup with a record of 9-2-1 overall and 2-2-1 in conference play. Last weekend, the Illini split their games at Demirjian Park, defeating No. 18 Penn State in a high-scoring contest (4-3) before falling to No. 23 Ohio State (3-0).

Historically, Illinois has a slight advantage over Maryland in their series, holding a 5-3-1 edge overall. The teams last met on September 29, 2024, when Illinois secured a narrow 1-0 victory in Champaign.

Maryland comes into the match with an even record of 6-6-0 and is looking to break a three-game losing streak against Illinois. Under head coach Michael Marchiano's leadership in his first full season, the Terrapins have seen changes in key positions due to departures from last year.

Both teams share two common opponents this season: Penn State and Indiana. Illinois defeated Penn State and drew with Indiana, while Maryland lost to Penn State but beat Indiana.

Illinois head coach Katie Hultin achieved "the best start in program history at 7-0-1 through eight matches and extended it to 9-1-1 through 11 matches." She is also "the only head coach in program history to win her first seven games in her debut season and not concede a match in her first nine games." Hultin earned her "first ranked win against #18 Penn State on Sept. 25."

Goalkeeper Izzy Lee has been notable this season with "seven clean sheets...in 12 appearances," making "58 saves across those 12 games." She currently ranks second nationally for shutouts and set a new personal record with "10 saves against #18 Penn State on Sept. 25."

Sarah Foley leads Illinois offensively with six goals and thirteen points this season. She scored her first career hat trick against Valparaiso on September 7 and has three game-winning goals—the most in the conference.

Other contributors include Emma Yee, who recorded her first brace versus Valparaiso and scored the decisive goal against Penn State; Lia Howard, who netted her first brace against Penn State; Ashley Stellon, leading the team with four assists; Cayla Jackson, who tallied one goal and two assists versus Valparaiso; freshman Ashlyn Adams with three assists so far; and freshman Kyra Berman registering her first assist earlier this season.