Wake Forest Athletics
GAME OF THE WEEK: Women's Soccer vs. Illinois
9/3/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Sept. 3, 2012
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -Wake Forest fans will have a chance to be rewarded for supporting the Demon Deacons at selected home games through the new Game of the Week program, which kicks off with the women's soccer team's game against Illinois on Sunday at 2 p.m. at Spry Stadium.
Each week during the fall, one high-profile home event will be designated as the Game of the Week. At that game, fans should check in at the marketing table to be entered into a season-long raffle, giving them one entry for every Game of the Week that they attend. The more games you go to, the greater chance you have to win.
At the end of the fall season, a drawing will be held for a Grand Prize of two men's basketball season tickets and a Wake Forest prize pack. Other prizes include four tickets to a men's basketball ACC home game, four tickets to a men's basketball non-conference game and four women's basketball season passes.
Below is the Game of the Week schedule for the month of September. Games for the rest of the fall will be announced at a later date.
September Games of the Week
| Date | Event | Time |
| 9/9 | Women's soccer vs. Illinois | 2 p.m. |
| 9/16 | Field hockey vs. North Carolina | 1 p.m. |
| 9/21 | Men's soccer vs. Duke | 7 p.m. |
| 9/29 | Women's soccer vs. Clemson | 1 p.m. |
About this Week's Game of the Week
Coming off of last year's College Cup and with a 4-1-1 record to start the 2012 season, the 15th-ranked Wake Forest women's soccer team faces a high-profile non-conference matchup with Illinois on Sunday at 2 p.m. at Spry Stadium in what will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
The Demon Deacons are fresh off of winning the Princeton Invitational title last weekend with a sweep of Princeton and Hofstra. Star junior Rachel Nuzzolese has led the Demon Deacons with two goals and six points in the early season, while All-American goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe holds a 0.64 goals against average and recently set a Wake Forest record with her 19th career shutout.
The Fighting Illini, which are ranked No. 20 by Top Drawer Soccer, hold a 2-1-1 record that includes an impressive road win over UC Santa Barbara. Three different players have a goal apiece for Illinois this season, and goalkeeper Steph Panozzo has played every minute in net, keeping two shutouts.
Both Wake Forest and Illinois have players currently competing for the U.S. Under-20 National Team at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Japan. Demon Deacon All-American forward Katie Stengel has seen time in three of the Americans' four games, including a 90-minute appearance against defending champions Germany. Fighting Illini midfielder Vanessa DiBernado scored a highlight-reel goal against North Korea in the quarterfinals to help the U.S. to a 2-1 win. The Americans will face Nigeria in the semifinals tomorrow at 2:50 a.m. EDT on ESPNU and ESPN3.
