McLean County Times

Illinois State (1-2-1, 0-0-0 MVC) is set to open its post-Labor Day schedule with two in-state matchups this week. Northwestern (3-2-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) will visit Adelaide Street Field on Thursday, followed by a trip to Western Illinois (0-3-0, 0-0-0 OVC) on Sunday. The games are scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday and 1 p.m. Sunday on ESPN+.

The Wildcats lead the all-time series against Illinois State with a 7-3-0 margin. Their last encounter was in 2021 when Northwestern secured a 2-1 overtime victory at Adelaide Street Field. Illinois State's most recent win over Northwestern came in 2011, when Rachel Tejada scored the game-winner in double overtime during her freshman year.

Illinois State holds an 8-2-2 advantage over Western Illinois, including victories in their last two meetings. The Redbirds have been unbeaten in six of their last seven encounters with the Leathernecks, with the only loss occurring in Macomb in 2021.

This week marks the beginning of a three-game stretch for Illinois State against fellow Illinois teams. Four of their next five games will be against in-state opponents. In total, Illinois State will face six in-state teams this season, tying the program record set by the squads from 1997, 1998, and 2016.

In their game against Illinois on August 25, the Redbirds started five true freshmen: Eiley Henderson, Chloe Cline, Isabelle Cameron, Kennedy Herman, and Eve Gricius. This marked only the second time since 2014 that Illinois State has started five true freshmen in a single game. The previous instance was a scoreless draw against No.19 Marquette in 2017.

This season is also notable as it is just the third time since 2014 that five true freshmen have started for Illinois State within a single season—joining the teams from 2022 and 2017. Henderson and Cameron have started all four games for Illinois State this year.

For more information on tickets and other related content, visit GoRedbirds.com or use the Illinois State Redbirds App.