After trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Nebraska women’s soccer team fought back to score three goals in the second half to grab a 3-1 victory over Illinois on Thursday night at Barbara Hibner Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.
“I think it was a great comeback and our work ethic was there,” sophomore midfielder Florence Belzile said postgame.
The Huskers outshot the Fighting Illini 24-6 in the game. They led in shots on goal with 11 compared to Illinois’s four. They also led in corner kicks with eight, while the Fighting Illini had just one. Nebraska secured four conference wins for the first time since 2018.
Junior forward, Makayla Woods put the Illini ahead scoring the first goal of the night in the 39th minute. Despite being down 1-0, the Huskers led in shots 10-6 heading into the break.
In the second half, it was all Nebraska. The Husker’s defense was stellar, not allowing a single shot by the Fighting Illini. The Nebraska offense finally broke through in the 67th minute. Sophomore forward Sarah Weber netted her eighth goal of the season to tie the game at one.
The Huskers took the lead just 10 minutes later when Belzile scored not just her first goal of the season, but her first ever collegiate goal to put the Huskers ahead 2-1.
In the final minute of action, junior forward Eleanor Dale sealed the win for the Huskers by scoring her fourth goal of the season to give Nebraska the 3-1 win over Illinois.
“We are getting a ton of energy from these wins and our goal is to finish (number) one in the Big Ten. So that’s what we have our sights set on and that’s what we’re going to do,” Weber said.
Weber led the Huskers offensively with a goal, an assist, and six shots on the night. Belzile also had an impressive performance with three shots, an assist, and a goal. Junior midfielder Regan Raabe added three shots and an assist while Dale added four shots and a goal in the match.
Nebraska took on the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday and lost 4-0. The Huskers are now 6-5-5 overall and 4-2-2 in the Big Ten. Their next opponent will be Penn State. Kickoff is set for Thursday night at 7:00 pm in Lincoln. This will be their final home game before finishing the regular season at Wisconsin.
