Jacksonville, IL – Principia College Men's Soccer traveled to Illinois College for their season opener. It was a brisk and gusty evening on the turf field at England Stadium.
A Look at the Match/Game- Principia held Illinois College back in the first half and created several chances. In the 19
th minute,
Cole Heinbaugh drove into the box and was fouled as he pushed the ball through two defenders, drawing a penalty kick. After earning the foul, Heinbaugh stepped up and calmly pushed the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal. The first half continued to favor the Panthers as they took the one goal lead into halftime. The Blueboys brought more energy into the second half, but the Panthers continued to press for a second goal. In the 70
th minute,
Cole Heinbaugh provided that second goal, beating multiple Illinois College defenders and finishing into the bottom left corner (his second of the night). The game was not over. Illinois College built momentum going into the final 10 minutes and Niko Scott cut the lead in half for the Blueboys. The final 5 minutes of the game were tense, with Illinois finding a few chances on goal, but Principia held off the attacks with strong defending and solid goalkeeping. At the final whistle, the Panthers earned the 2-1 win over Illinois College.
Good to Know-
Coach Quote
"This was a good start to the season. There are a lot of positive takeaways that we will build on. More than anything, we're grateful that we have the opportunity to be on the field and compete. We are thankful to Illinois College for hosting us, for the officials, and for all of the hard work that the players have been putting in over the last year. We still have a lot of work to do. We will keep on learning and enjoy the process."
Up Next- On Tuesday, 3/9/2021, at 7:00 PM, the Panthers will travel to Eureka to face the Red Devils.
