The first game of the 2021-2022 Illinois sports season ended in a 1-0 win over Eastern Illinois University with sophomore Makala Woods scoring the game winning goal. 

Although only winning by one goal, according to the live stats Illinois looked to have been dominating. In total the Illini took 13 shots with six of them on target but faced difficulties to be clinical in front of the net. 

On the other hand, Eastern Illinois didn’t see much luck in their game as they were only able to muster one shot all game forcing sophomore Julia Cili to make one save the entire game. 

Unlimited substitutions allowed head coach Janet Rayfield to get in as many players as she could to evaluate, give some playing minutes and potentially make a difference. 

Woods was in the first batch of substitutions after the first 30-minute half and within four minutes of playing she got her goal in the 34-minute, giving Illinois the lead. 

Even with more substitutions and shots, Illinois couldn’t put another one behind the net, and the match finished 16 minutes early due to inclement of weather in the Champaign-Urbana area. 

The last exhibition game for Illinois will be on Aug. 14 against Notre Dame at 3 p.m.

@AngelleCortes  

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