Box Score TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – It was a humid night in Memorial Stadium, but the heat didn't stop the Sycamores from taking down the Illinois State Redbirds 2-1 for the first time since 2008.
 
"I'm really proud of the group tonight, it was a great team win," head coach Julie Hanley said. "We had energy from the start and played for each other for the full 90 minutes."
 
In the early going it was all Redbirds, controlling the pace and attacking the Indiana State (6-7-1) defense. In the 12th minute of the first half, Illinois State's Kelli Zickert slotted a ball to the middle and hit Mikayla Unger in perfect stride for the goal.
 
After the goal the Sycamores turned up the heat on offense. In the 31st minute of the first half Katie Wells had a corner kick, which gave Sydney Hamker the opportunity to run through the ball for the goal, tying the game up 1-1.
 
Not even a full minute later in the 32nd minute, Tessa Leong had a beautiful through ball to Alina Steffen, who took the keeper one-on-one and found the back of the net for a 2-1 lead.
 
Entering halftime the Redbirds found themselves trailing, and that's how it would stay.
 
The second half was all Sycamores. Indiana State controlled the pace of the game and limited any scoring opportunities for the Redbirds, allowing no shots on goal.
 
Illinois State had three shots during the second half, which matched the Sycamores. Goalkeeper Hannah Sullivan made three saves during the game, and Indiana State had a total of nine shots.
 
Prior to tonight's game, Indiana State hadn't beaten the Redbirds since 2008, and held an all-time record of 3-20-0 against their rivals from Normal.
 
"We will enjoy this tonight, but tomorrow we get back to work and prepare for a very good Evansville team on Wednesday," Hanley said.

The Sycamores will be back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 7:00 p.m. to face off with the Evansville Purple Aces.
 
 For the latest information on the Sycamore Soccer team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.