SPORTS
Men’s soccer looking forward to tournament at home
Looking for a print version?
Simply choose ‘Print’ on your computer and a printer-friendly document will be generated.
Also by :
Related Stories:
- Badgers' look for first tournament win in the Banda era (November 7, 2001)
- Men's soccer splits weekend games (September 24, 2001)
- UW men's soccer won't let Marquette loss stop momentum (November 12, 2002)
- Soccer makes schedule changes (September 20, 2001)
- Men's soccer scores first win of the season (September 3, 2003)
Monday, November 5, 2001
Over the last few months the UW men?s soccer team has made a complete circle.
After enjoying a six-game winning steak, the team then struggled, dropping seven of their next 10 games.
Then, capped off by Sunday?s victory over No. 14 Ohio State, the team found a way to battle back into Big Ten contention by winning three straight games.
“We?re finishing the way we began,” UW head coach Kalekeni Banda said.
And the turnaround couldn?t have come at a better time. This weekend the Badgers play host to the Big Ten tournament, where they will hold the fourth seed.
Banda said when he first heard that Madison would host the tournament several years ago, he set all of his sights in preparing for this season, wanting to make an impact in front of a local crowd.
“My plan was this would be the year for us to put a stamp on the program, to turn things around,” Banda said. “I think we?ve reached that point. Hosting the championship will give us a chance to showcase our program.”
In particular, Banda can put his scoring duo of Dominic DaPra and Aaron Lauber in the spotlight. Dubbed the “two-headed monster” by Banda, the duo accounts for 26 of the Badgers? 37 goals this season.
When Banda first set his sights on putting together a solid season for the tournament in Madison, his offensive monster was not in the game plan.
Lauber was a walk-on for Wisconsin and played in the shadows of Narciso Fernandes until this year, when he was called upon to fill the shoes left in Fernandes? absence.
And several years ago DaPra wasn?t even a Badger — he was playing for St. Louis. The senior forward transferred to UW last season after he struggled at SLU and felt the need to return to his home state.
While DaPra?s arrival was unexpected, Banda is not complaining.
“I?m not going to lie, he?s been like a godsend to me,” Banda admitted. “He?s been tremendous.”
And now the player that Banda also labeled as a Christmas gift is going to team up with his senior counterpart in Lauber and try to put together a run in the Big Ten tournament in order to extend his UW career into the NCAA tournament.
With its win over the Buckeyes on Sunday, Wisconsin improved its record to 10-7-1 overall, 3-3-0 in the Big Ten, a record that Banda said is not good enough to get his team into the NCAA tournament.
According to the head coach, the only way his team can prolong its postseason play is by winning the conference tournament this weekend.
While the task looks to be difficult for UW, Banda is confident in his team?s ability to put together a run.
“I like our chances,” Banda said. “It?s the best I?ve felt about this program since I came here — not because we?re a good team, I?ve had better teams previously — but we?re coming together as a program.”
With the fourth seed, UW will start its postseason play on Thursday when it faces the fifth-seeded Wolverines. The winners will advance to the second round, where they will play No. 1 seeded Indiana on Friday.
