Moline's Musings

Soccer Weekend Wrap

Posted by: Brian Moline

Tuesday, September 8, 2009 4:49 PM

The Illinois soccer team bounced back in a big way from Friday's loss to #9 UCLA, as they dominated the Gauchos from UC Santa Barbara on Sunday in a 3-0 win.  Junior Jordan HIlbrands continued her hot start to the season, tallying her fourth and fifth goals of the season, while freshman Niki Read contributed a goal and an assist.  For her efforts, Read was honored by the Big Ten conference yesterday as its co-Freshman of the Week, as she shared the honor with Minnesota's Cat Parkhill.

How dominant were the Illini on Sunday?  Let's take a quick look at the final stats.  The Illini outshot UCSB 29-5.  Twelve Illinois shots were on goal, compared to just one for the Gauchos.  The Illini also tallied five corner kicks to UCSB's three.  Illinois improved to 3-1-1 on the season, while UCSB fell to 1-3-1.

Overall, it was a good weekend for the Big Ten conference.  Here's how things went for the league:

Thursday 9/3

Michigan State 1 UCSB 1.  Yes, the same team Illinois destroyed on Sunday, but this game was at Santa Barbara

Michigan 4 Central Michigan 3

Wisconsin 1 Northern Illinois 0

Friday 9/4

#9 UCLA 2 #11 Illinois 1

#5 Florida State 2 #13 Penn State 1

#19 Minnesota 0 Tennessee 0 (OT)

Ohio State 3 San Diego 0

Indiana 2 #6 Florida 1 (OT)

Northwestern 1 Loyola IL 0 (OT)

New Mexico 1 Iowa 0

Saturday 9/5

#14 Purdue 1 Valparaiso 0

Sunday 9/6

#11 Illinois 3 UCSB 0

Rutgers 1 #13 Penn State 0.  Nittany Lions fall to 2-3 on the season.

Ohio State 1 USC 0.  Only goal comes on a controversial penalty kick late in the second half, but it appears the Buckeyes were outplaying the Trojans according to the stat sheet.

Iowa 4 Northern Arizona 1

Michigan 4 Eastern Michigan 1

Michigan State 4 Central Michigan 0

Tennessee 1 Wisconsin 0

#19 Minnesota 4 North Dakota State 0

Indiana 2 Mercer 1

Monday 9/7

#14 Purdue 6 Ball State 1

Best weekend:  Indiana.  The Hoosiers tied their best start in school history with wins over #6 Florida and Mercer.  After a subpar 2008, it looks like Indiana is returning to the form that took them to the NCAA Tournament in 2007 under head coach Mick Lyon.

Worst weekend:  Penn State.  It's not that either loss this weekend was particularly bad.  Florida State is a top five team, and Rutgers made it to the Sweet 16 last season, knocking off Penn State in the process.  But the talent on Penn State's roster is superior to that of the Scarlet Knights, and that of West Virginia who they lost to last weekend.  The Nittany Lions slow start is giving conference foes hope that Penn State's stranglehold on the Big Ten title could end in 2009.

To the polls

The Illini hold steady at #11 in the NSCAA poll this week.  Purdue jumps all the way up to number seven after two more wins.  Minnesota falls four spots to #23, Penn State drops eleven spots to #24, and Indiana enters the poll at #25.  Michigan State and Ohio State are receiving votes.

Soccer America penalized the Illini for their loss to UCLA, dropping them four spots to #20.  Meanwhile Purdue jumps four spots to #8, Indiana enters the poll all the way up to #12 (!), Michigan State falls four spots to #19, and Penn State plummets thirteen places to #23.

Rob Ziegler's Top Drawer Soccer Rankings, which predict the NCAA Tournament field of 64 are always interesting.  He holds Illinois steady at #27, while Michigan State remains the highest ranked Big Ten team, holding at #14.  Purdue is also steady at #18, while Indiana rises one spot to #31 and Minnesota remains at #39.  Penn State falls out of their rankings this week, which is an unusual occurrence.

Soccer Times is behind the times and hasn't yet updated their rankings this week.  I'll pass them along once they do.  I'll be talking to freshman Niki Read later today.  I'll share that interview with you later this week, as the Illini will travel to Portland for a tough weekend, facing the #3 Pilots and the underrated Washington Huskies.  Thanks for reading.

bmoline@wdws.com

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