CHICAGO - Loyola Chicago returns to Loyola Soccer Park to take on the Illinois State Redbirds Sunday afternoon in the annual Pack the Park match. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT. The Ramblers look to snap a two-match skid, while the Redbirds have yet to face a loss this season.

PROMOTIONS
Help us Pack the Park! The first 300 students to Sunday's match will receive a Loyola themed beach towel. Students can hop on a shuttle to Loyola Soccer Park from the Father Damen Statue on the Lakeshore Camus. The service begins at 1 p.m. and will loop until the end of the match to bring students back.

QUICK KICKS
• Loyola played its last two matches on the road at Big Ten members Iowa and No. 5 Michigan State.
• At MSU, the Ramblers held the top-five Spartans scoreless until the 83rd minute. Allison Deardorff made three saves in goal on 21 shots.
• She tallied 10 saves the match before at Iowa, falling just one shy of her career best.
• The Ramblers won their home opener against Central Michigan, marking the fourth win over the Chippewas in program history. Loyola now leads that series 4-2.
• Maggie Schmidt put the Ramblers on the board in the eighth minute of play against CMU. Schmidt's unassisted strike at the 7:25 mark proved to be the game-winner, as the Ramblers' defense held Central Michigan scoreless for the remainder of the match.
• Loyola held a 10-8 advantage on shots, putting five on target. The Ramblers held CMU to just three on goal attempts. All were saved by Deardorff between the posts. Deardorff tallied the win and shutout. It marks her 19th career win and 19th career shutout for Loyola.
• Loyola standout Zoe Hevey earned a pair of preseason honors. Hevey was named to the 2026 IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Positional Players to Watch list for forwards. She was also selected to the 2026 Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Preseason All-Conference Team.
• Hevey led Loyola last season in points (16), goals (5), assists (6), shots (67), and shots on-goal (27).
• Head coach Jon Sandoval is in his second season leading the Ramblers. He holds a 10-6-6 record with Loyola. Over his seven year head coaching career, Sandoval sits at 72-26-21 overall.

SCOUTING ILLINOIS STATE
• The Redbirds enter the weekend 2-0-2 after picking up two straight draws with UT Martin and Northwestern. ISU's two wins this year came against Northern Illinois and Lindenwood.
• ISU was tabbed second in the Missouri Valley Preseason Poll with keeper Madi Valenti and defender Grace Petrie landing on the preseason All-MVC team.
• Valenti has all four starts in goal for the Redbirds so far this season. She's allowed only three goals for a .75 goals against average. She has 11 saves and one shutout.
• Petrie is third on the team in points with three off a goal and assist.
• Eve Gricius and Rylann Law lead ISU with four points each. Gricius has one goal and a team-high two assists, while Law has a team-best two goals scored.

SERIES HISTORY
Illinois State leads the all-time series, 14-11-0, but the Ramblers have won the last seven straight. Loyola took a 1-0 win last year. Zoe Hevey assisted on the game winning goal.