The 9-1 Iowa soccer team returns home today at 8 p.m. to face off against Illinois. This is the Hawkeyes’ first game after losing their first game of the season, 1-0, against Purdue.

The Hawkeyes dropped in the rankings after their first loss to Purdue in a decade, coming in at No. 25 according to TopDrawerSoccer.

Coming into the season, the Hawkeyes knew that they would not win every game. They know they must bounce back with the right attitude and learn from their mistakes to continue their successful start to the season.

Against the Boilermakers, the Hawkeyes had possession of the ball for most of the game on the Boilermakers’ side of the field but were unable to convert in the final 20 yards of the field.

“We know we need to be locked in 90 minutes mentally,” head coach Dave DiIanni said. “And we thought we took a break on a set piece, unfortunately, and we’ve learned from that. I was really excited about their efforts and attitudes.”

The players share the same perspective as well; they know that will become better as they respond to their mistakes.

“I think it’s about the bounce back,” senior captain and defender Hannah Drkulec said. “These past two trainings have been awesome for our team, and we’ve all been really excited to be back out here. I think we’re really responding well to it, knowing that we’ll learn from our mistakes and become better because of it.”

The team will try to not to have the momentum of the loss carry with them into this game against Illinois. Redshirt senior forward Kaleigh Haus said last season the team did let the momentum of a loss carry with them.

“If we can come back out and win, then we know we can keep the punches rolling,” Haus said.

Illinois is another tough Big Ten opponent for this team, as the Fighting Illini are 7-1 this season and are receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll. They are coming in with a four-game winning streak and have 19 goals, which is fourth-most in the conference. 

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Illinois plays in a 3-5-2 formation, which is the same formation that the Hawkeyes played against when they faced the Hoosiers, who they beat 2-0 on Sept. 20.

“They were a little bit different, so we are trying to adjust the way we play them so that we can attack Illinois even better,” Drkulec said.

The Hawkeyes plan to come out ready to go from the start against the Fighting Illini. 

“Illinois is a quick starting team,” DiIanni said. “They score a lot of goals. They got a lot of upperclassmen in their front three, and they punish you for mistakes. They’ve been a little bit like us last year where maybe they don’t have as much possession, but they can score off the opportunities they have, so for us we have to come out right away.”

Tonight’s game is on the Big Ten Network. After this game, Iowa will come back out Sunday at 1 p.m. to face Northwestern, which is 2-5-1 and play at Nebraska tonight.