Following a come-from-behind 2–1 win over Maryland, confidence will be high for Wisconsin (3-4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) as they travel down the road to Milwaukee for a derby game against Marquette (3-5, 1-1 Conf.) Wednesday.
They may not be in the same conference but that doesn’t mean it’s not an important game, with plenty of history between the traditional in-state rivals. The two sides have met 43 times, with the Badgers being victorious on 21 occasions to Marquette’s 14 and the remaining eight games ending in a tie.
Both sides are coming into the match with one loss and one win in conference play this season.
The Badgers are coming off their most impressive victory of the season, a 2–1 double-overtime win away from home against a strong Maryland side. That win comes on the heels of a gritty display that saw them fall 3–1 to No. 2 Indiana.
On the other side is Marquette, who compete in the Big East conference. They opened up their in-conference schedule with a 3–0 win over No. 13 Villanova but suffered a 2–0 defeat at the hands of Seton Hall in their most recent outing.
In fact, looking at the season as a whole the two teams have very similar records coming into this one — both teams managing three wins from eight games so far. The Badgers stand at three wins, four losses and one tie in the season, whilst Marquette has three wins and five losses.
For Marquette, nine of their 12 goals have come from three players. Forwards Lukas Sunesson and Connor Alba, and defender Patrick Seagrist each have three goals to their name through eight games.
Goalkeeper Luis Barraza will also be one to watch out for as he has produced an impressive 28 saves through six games for Marquette this season. During that span, he has also conceded less than a goal per game including two shutouts.
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On the Wisconsin side of the ball, the goals have been spread far and wide, with their seven goals this season all coming from different players.
One of those players is Andrew Akindele, who has been impressive for the Badgers of late, leading the team in shots on goal with six, and assists with two. One of those assists was the pass that saw Michael Russell II score and sent the game against Maryland into overtime.
The game kicks off at 7 p.m. Wednesday, and you can follow the action on the Badger Men’s Soccer twitter page.
