After three consecutive games against nationally ranked opponents, the UW men’s soccer team gets to breathe a small sigh of relief this weekend. On paper, the last 10 days have been the Badgers hardest stretch of the season and the two loses out of three games has proved that.
The Badgers (7-6-0 overall, 1-2-0 Big Ten) host the UW Soccer Fest Weekend today against Dartmouth College at 7:30 p.m. at the McClimon Soccer Complex.
The Big Green are coming off of their biggest game of the season, tying Yale University 2-2 in an overtime game. Although the Big Green are only 2-6-1 this season, their tie against Yale proved that they can play with nationally ranked opponents.
Forwards Scott Darcy and Juan Romero, two legitimate goal-scoring threats, lead Dartmouth’s offense. This does not bode well for the Badgers, as their defensive form has slipped lately, allowing seven goals in the past three games.
To make matters worse, the Badgers leading goal scorer, Nick Van Sicklen, was unavailable for Wednesday’s loss against UW-Milwaukee and remains questionable for this weekend’s games.
The Badgers get a chance to boost their Big Ten record Sunday against Michigan. The Wolverines (4-6-1, 0-3) currently hold the cellar spot in the Big Ten standings. Disregarding their current struggles this season, the Wolverines have had the better of the Badgers as of late, beating UW twice last year.
First-year Badger head coach Jeff Rohrman seems to be a little frustrated with the way the results have gone for the Badgers the past couple of games.
“I can’t fault our guys’ effort,” Rohrman said. “They have showed a lot of heart and fight and competed for the entire ninety minutes of every game. We’ve just got to do a better job of making sure that all of our effort comes with rewards.”
Specifically, Rohrman meant that the team needs to score more goals. The top teams in the country score goals against any team, but for the Badgers the key to staying successful and regaining the momentum that they had in the earlier part of the season is to score goals this weekend and to get back into their offensive rhythm.
Having only scored three goals in the past three games, it is essential for the Badgers to score this weekend against weaker opponents.
“We don’t like to put too much pressure on ourselves,” Rohrman said. “As coaches, we don’t want to put too much pressure on the guys and put too much importance on these upcoming games.”
The games this weekend, however, might become a chance for revitalizing the teams’ winning spirit. Both games are at home and they should not be as tough for the team as their previous three games.
Their performance Wednesday night against No.11 UW-Milwaukee in 1-0 overtime loss showed that the team can compete with the best and that they are a better team at home than away. All of this bodes well for the Badgers, despite their recent tough times.
The Badgers must score Friday night and play well against Dartmouth. The real test is Sunday when the team plays Michigan and tries to erase the dominance the Wolverines have had over the UW of late. The game against Michigan marks the first of three consecutive Big Ten games to close out the regular season.
Playing well, scoring goals, and regaining momentum are the crucial elements for the Badgers as they close out their regular season and head into the Big Ten tournament.
