University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
4-5-3, 1-2-2
Illinois State
5-4-6, 2-0-3
Panther soccer falls short in loss to Redbirds, 1-0
10/11/2025 4:08:00 PM | Women's Soccer
UNI comes up short in home match up with Illinois State. Panthers visit Drake next Saturday.
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — The UNI soccer team put up a strong defensive effort but ultimately fell short in a narrow 1-0 loss to the Illinois State Redbirds in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play at the UNI Soccer Field during the Panthers' fourth annual Kick MITO Game in support of mitochondrial disease awareness.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UNI dominated possession over the Redbirds in the first ten minutes of action. Sophia Balistreri would make an impressive save in the net in the 20th minute off a Redbird corner kick, holding the score level at 0-0 into the halftime break.
In the second frame, Northern Iowa would increase its offensive output following just one shot attempt in the opening half with six second half shots. The Redbirds would break the scoreless tie in the 52nd minute however with Sammi Cenek finding the back of the net unassisted in a scramble in front of the goal. Despite UNI's high intensity of play late and multiple throw-in and corner kick attempts, the Panthers were unable to tie the match late.
Goalkeeper Thordis Melsted finished the afternoon recording a UNI career-high four saves, while Haylee Braun tallied three of the Panthers' seven shot attempts. Caroline Hazen, Sophie Hoffmann, Denise Camarena and Aynslea Ulschmid all recorded one shot attempt.
It was a beautiful day honoring the memory of Jace Smith and awareness for mitochondrial disease, said UNI interim head coach Alex Place Thomas. Unfortunately we didn't come out with the result we wanted today. We are looking forward to our next match and plan to get back to work this week.
UP NEXT
The Panthers return to action next Saturday, Oct. 18 when they visit the Drake Bulldogs. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT at Mediacom Stadium in Des Moines with live coverage available on ESPN+.
UNI women's soccer action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Panther Soccer), X (@UNI_Soccer) and on Instagram (@unipanthersoccer). The full 2025 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
Team Stats
Sammi Cenek (1)
GOAL by ILS Cenek, Sammi.
51:31
