The Normal University Pioneers are taking a road trip to challenge the Sacred Heart-Griffin Cyclones at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Neither squad made it on the board the last time they hit the pitch, so they've probably got a bit of extra motivation.
Normal University's tournament run continued when they took on St. Charles East on Saturday. The Pioneers lost 4-1 to the Fighting Saints. While losing is never fun, Normal University can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois soccer rankings (they are ranked 127th, while St. Charles East are ranked 36th).
Meanwhile, for the first time this season, Sacred Heart-Griffin was forced to settle for a draw. They and Jacksonville finished up on equal footing with a 0-0 draw on Tuesday.
Sacred Heart-Griffin's draw gives them a new season record of 7-7-1. As for Normal University, their loss dropped their record down to 9-7-3.
Everything went Normal University's way against Sacred Heart-Griffin in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, as Normal University made off with a 4-1 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Pioneers since the team won't have the home-pitch advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
