Just two days after a heartbreaking 2-1 letdown against Ohio State Saturday, the University of Wisconsin men’s soccer team prepares to face in-state rival UW-Green Bay tonight at the McClimon Soccer Complex.
Although the schedule is designed for three to four days between each game, Wisconsin has the misfortune of playing two games in three days, with the drive back from Columbus in between.
The scheduling conflict came when the UWGB game was changed from its original date of Oct. 15. According to head coach Jeff Rohrman, playing so many games in a short time span is not an issue for the team.
“The hard part of college soccer is to find a good time to slide any game in there just because you’ve got two different conferences that you’re dealing with in terms of scheduling,” Rohrman said. “They know it’s a bit of a physical challenge to come back after a game on Saturday night and play on Monday, but I know they’re going to be ready and eager for the challenge.”
The Badgers will not be the only team put in tough circumstances for tonight’s game. The Phoenix also had a road game Saturday against a ranked team in seventh-ranked UIC. UWGB fell 2-0, ending a two-game win streak.
“It was probably a pretty fair compromise on both sides,” Rohrman said of Green Bay’s similar short break. “It will be a very level playing field from that perspective.”
In Wisconsin’s game against the Buckeyes, the Badgers had their first lead in a Big Ten match since September, when junior Brandon Miller’s goal put the Badgers up 1-0. However, Ohio State came storming back, scoring two goals in the next 20 minutes to hand the Badgers their fourth loss in the Big Ten this season.
“We let our guard down just a little bit after they scored,” Rohrman said. “It was one of those games where it came down to who was going to make a play.”
Although the loss was a tough one to take, the Badgers will be able to use the game as a lesson in preparation for UWGB.
“We had a couple of breakdowns, and good teams are going to punish you for those,” Rohrman said. “I think our challenge against Green Bay, and the next few games after that, is to minimize those challenges and make sure we execute on both sides of the ball.”
If the Badgers are going to record their seventh non-conference win this year, they are going to have to limit their offensive attack from sophomore JC Banks and senior Tosaint Ricketts.
“Green Bay is going to present a little bit of a different challenge because they’ve got those very talented individual players that can present some problems when they are isolated,” Rohrman said. “Ricketts up top can be very dangerous because he poses a threat to get behind you and is extremely fast and athletic.”
However, if the Badgers follow the trend of other Phoenix opponents this year, they should be able to limit UWGB’s attack. The Phoenix have been shut out six times this season, four of which resulted in losses.
On offense for the Badgers, the team has not been shut out since a 1-0 loss to Michigan State on Oct. 5. Considering the amount of success that Wisconsin has had offensively against opponents outside the Big Ten, they will look to put up some big numbers against the Phoenix.
