The Illini soccer team is heading to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in program history after upsetting No. 7 Texas A&M; on Sunday, 2-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Down 1-0 at halftime, the Illini found themselves in familiar territory. In last weekend’s Big Ten Tournament semifinal against Penn State, the Illini were down 2-0 at the half. In that game, the Illini came out and scored twice to tie it, before losing 3-2.

It was that game that gave the Illini hope on Sunday.

“We knew that if we scored two goals against Penn State that we could do it today,” said head coach Janet Rayfield. “So we went into halftime, made our adjustments and came out and did just that. Everyone believed and kept fighting.”

In the first half, Rayfield said the team did not come out composed. The Illini allowed the athleticism of Texas A&M; to take them out of their game plan and allowed the Aggie defense to keep them in check.

Aggie forward Ashlee Pistorious was able to get into the box and fired the ball past senior goalkeeper Leisha Alcia to give the Aggies the early lead.

Although the Illini went into half down 1-0, junior defender Natasha Karniski said the team did not panic.

“We were really positive going in at halftime,” Karniski said. “We knew we didn’t play our best first half; (Coach Rayfield) just told us to play our game and not be rattled by anything. You could see in everyone’s eyes that we weren’t going to give it up.”

Although the Aggies had the home field advantage, it was the Illini who took advantage of the field, which has a reputation for being one of the finest in the country. The surface is Tifway Bermuda grass, which plays fast and smooth, favoring the Illini, who pride their game on precision passing and possession.

“In the second half, we were able to get the ball on the ground and play Illini soccer,” Rayfield said. “We dominated the second half.”

The Illini executed their adjustments and swung the momentum to their favor.

“In the first 10 minutes of the second half, we were moving the ball well on the ground and passing well,” Karniski said. “We said to ourselves ‘We’re going to do this.'”

The Illini were creating more opportunities. They had already surpassed their shot total from the first half, 20 minutes into the second half. They nearly tied the game when senior forward Tara Hurless hit the crossbar at the 65:28 mark.

“I think up-top we started playing together,” said senior forward Andrea Ridgeway. “We were playing toward their backs; they would follow our forwards and play games with us. In the second half, we started to check them back to the ball and were able to create opportunities. That gave us confidence.”

It was only a minute after Hurless’ near miss that the Illini got on the board. Sophomore forward Jessica Bayne was able to find Karniski in the box for the score, demoralizing the Aggies.

“That first goal shocked them,” Ridgeway said. “It tied the game up and they tensed up.”

Like a shark in the water, the Illini smelled blood. Wasting no time, Ridgeway put the Illini ahead for good just 1:15 after Karniski’s goal.

“As a senior you want to make an impact,” Ridgeway said about the game-winner. “It felt great to be able to do so. Hopefully that goal was one of many that I’ll make this season.”

Up 2-1, the Illini tightened up the defense. The Aggies had one shot to tie the game, but it missed high, clinching the Sweet Sixteen bid for the Illini.

“I’m excited for this team,” Rayfield said. “They just kept fighting and fighting. The key to the game was adjusting at halftime and going out and playing our game. I credit our midfield; they played a terrific game. They changed the game in the second half.”

Rayfield was most excited for the seniors on the team.

“It’s really exciting for this senior class, because last year’s senior class won the Big Ten Tournament,” Rayfield said. “Now this year’s senior class took it to another level.”

Sunday’s game would not have been possible if it were not for Friday’s victory. Hurless scored two goals as the Illini defeated Rice, 2-0 in the first round. Hurless’ two goals gave her 47 in her career, making her the Illini’s all-time goals leader, surpassing former Illini Emily Brown.

“It was one of those games where (Rice was the underdog) and had a lot of energy and fight,” Rayfield said.

“I was proud of the way our ‘D’ hung in there. (Junior defender) Kelly Campbell and (sophomore defender) Sarah Brown continued to fight. Things were not going well for us; we weren’t connecting on our shots, but instead of getting frustrated we continued to fight, and when you do that, you can win games.”

With the win, the Illini move to the third round to play Big 12 opponent Nebraska, who is 14-8 on the season. The Cornhuskers advanced by upsetting No. 8 Kansas, 2-1 in overtime. In their first round game, the Cornhuskers defeated Oral Roberts, 3-0.

The location and game site is to be announced.