You might remember my post last year about this time griping about the lack of TV coverage for the Fighting Illini soccer team.  No such complaints this year, as the Orange and Blue will appear three times on the Big Ten Network.  Their games against Minnesota (9/27), Penn State (10/25) and Michigan State (10/30) will all be carried by BTN.  Only one of the three is live (Penn State), as the Minnesota game will air on same day delay at 3 pm, and the Michigan State contest will be shown on Sunday 11/1 at noon.  There is also the possibility that the game on Friday 11/6 at Northwestern could be selected as the BTN's wildcard game.

We're still trying to finalize our radio broadcast schedule for Illinois soccer, but here are the matches we're tentatively planning to carry:

Friday 8/21 vs. Illinois State

Friday 9/4 vs. UCLA

Sunday 10/11 vs. Wisconsin

Thursday 10/22 vs. Ohio State

Sunday 11/1 vs. Michigan

As you'd expect, the Illini volleyball team will also appear regularly on BTN following their sweet 16 season in 2008.  First year coach Kevin Hambly was my guest last night on Sportstalk, and with so much of last year's team returning, he is understandably excited about his squad's prospects this fall.  As for TV, the Illini's matches against national champion Penn State (9/26), Northwestern (10/14), Minnesota (10/16), Ohio State (11/14) and Northwestern again (11/25) will all be shown.  The matches against Minnesota and Ohio State will be tape delayed and shown on the following Sunday at 8 pm, and the others will air live.  There is also the possibility of Illinois' return trip to Minnesota on 11/28 being the BTN's wildcard match that weekend.

I had the opportunity to see Ella Masar and the Chicago Red Stars in action on Sunday for the first (and likely only) time this season.  Ella played about 35 minutes in the second half and got off a couple of shots in the Red Stars' 3-2 loss to Abby Wambach and the Washington Freedom.  The loss officially eliminated the Red Stars from playoff contention.  I had a chance to talk with Ella for a few minutes after the game.  She was understandably frustrated after the loss and was pretty blunt at times in her assessment of the Red Stars.  I'll air that interview on Sportstalk tomorrow evening at about 5:45 pm.  You can hear it in podcast format shortly thereafter.

As far as the game itself, the Red Stars got goals from midfielders Megan Rapinoe and Karen Carney, as they led 1-0 early and were tied 2-2 until the 89th minute.  The defense had no answer for Abby Wambach, as she tallied two goals, and then allowed a late goal by reserve Allie Long that was way too easy, especially for that point in the game.  Late goals have hurt the Red Stars all season long.  I was also a bit disappointed by the play of midfielder Carli Lloyd, who is one of the US National Team members on the roster, along with Lindsey Tarpley and Rapinoe.  It's hard to believe, but Lloyd recorded her first assist of the season on Sunday, despite playing in 14 of the team's 18 games.  I thought Lloyd may just be having a bad day, as several of her passes were off line and/or late, but was told by another observer in the press box who watches all of their home games that this has been a regular occurrence.  With the defense struggling, especially in the middle, perhaps a trade would be in order.  Lloyd would certainly be attractive to other WPS teams because of her history with the US National Team.  Could she command a top flight defender in return?  Seems like a good fit to me.

If any of you have seen more of the Red Stars this season, I'd be curious to hear your take on the team.  Thanks for reading.

bmoline@wdws.com