Box Score

WACO, Texas – The Northern Illinois University women’s soccer team dropped a 2-0 decision to Baylor in a well contested match on Friday evening at Mary Lou Mays Field in Waco, Texas.

In the second game of the Baylor Tournament, the Bears (2-4-1, 0-0-0 Big 12) scored a goal in each half to down the Huskies (1-5-0, 0-0-0 MAC) in a hard-fought contest between two programs with a coaching connection.

NIU head coach John Ross was pleased with his team’s efforts against a Big 12 program on Friday evening, saying the Huskies competed well and made Baylor work very hard for the win.

“I’m proud of the team. We fought for everything tonight – every header, every loose ball,” Ross said after the game. “They had so much speed and talent, but I’m proud of the way we performed. We also had a few chances ourselves.”

The Huskies were beaten by two goals from Baylor midfielder Julie James. The first came via a set piece in the 13th minute before James struck again in the 68th minute. However, NIU had some chances on set pieces and counter attacks of its own, registering six shot attempts with three on goal.

Friday’s contest saw Ross on the sidelines opposite of former NIU coaches Paul and Marci Jobson, who led the Huskies’ program from 2005-07 and led NIU women’s soccer from the bottom of the Mid-American Conference to the league semifinals in just three seasons before taking over the program at Baylor. Marci Jobson also earned a spot on the 2007 USA Women’s National Team World Cup roster while coaching the Huskies.

Matching up with Baylor for the first time in program history, Ross praised the atmosphere and welcoming attitude of the Huskies’ host this weekend.

“They were such gracious hosts. I can’t say enough about them,” Ross added. “It’s been a great experience for our team to come down here. If we perform like we did tonight in our next game, we’ll have a great chance of getting a better result on Sunday.”

The Huskies will play on Mary Lou Mays Field in Waco again on Sunday against the UL-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns, who tied with Texas-San Antonio 2-2 in Friday’s opening match of the Baylor Tournament.

--NIU--