The University of Wisconsin men’s soccer team (5-6-3, 2-4-1 Big Ten) secured a spot in the upcoming Big Ten tournament after a 1-0 road win Sunday over Northwestern.
The team hovered in last place in the Big Ten standings this season before gaining momentum with a win over Michigan Oct. 7 and a tie with nationally ranked Maryland last week. Wisconsin now sits in 7th place, and the top eight teams participate in the Big Ten tournament that starts Nov. 4.
The Badgers turned around a poor start to Big Ten play with an Oct. 14 tie with the Maryland Terrapins (8-2-4, 4-0-3 Big Ten). The team surprised Maryland, which has led the Big Ten rankings this season, with an early goal in the 11th minute from Drew Brown off of an Aron Elí Sævarsson corner kick.
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Wisconsin goalkeeper Carter Abbott proved his toughness against a crafty and pacey Maryland side and made eight saves in the game, seven of which were in the first half. But Maryland’s 17 shots during the game led to it sneaking two shots past Abbott in the 47th and 60th minutes.
Aron Elí Sævarsson notched a second goal for the Badgers from the top of the 18-yard box in the 55th minute. The senior from Reykjavik, Iceland has played an average of 87.7 minutes per game this season, according to UW player statistics.
Wisconsin and Maryland ended up tying that match 2-2 in front of a rowdy crowd whose student section donned birthday hats in celebration of their veteran coach Sasho Cirovski’s 60th birthday.
“I thought we had a pretty good game plan,” Badgers head coach Neil Jones said of the Maryland game during an Oct. 18 press conference. “All in all, the guys’ ability and willingness to just dig in and grind and simply refuse to lose I thought was very, very good.”
The Badgers then returned back home and lost 1-2 to Indiana in an evenly contested match where both teams had a similar number of shots, fouls and corners. Badgers sophomore player Ryan Keefe scored his first career goal for the team with a shot off of a redirected free kick.
But Wisconsin went on to secure a Big Ten tournament berth after its 1-0 win over Northwestern in Evanston, Illinois. Playing on a turf field on the shores of Lake Michigan, the Badgers scored in the 15th minute when forward Jack Finnegan stole the ball from a Northwestern left back before crossing it to Max Keenan, who tapped it in with his right foot.
Keenan leads the team in goals this season with six, and Finnegan has three goals and four assists this season.
Wisconsin held onto its 1-0 lead for the rest of the game. But in a similar fashion to the Maryland game, the Wildcats outshot the Badgers 16-8 in the 90 minutes and forced Abbott into five saves.
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“I think the belief is definitely there, which is great,” Jones said during the Oct. 18 press conference. “As we come into the critical stretch, I think we’re in a good spot, and I’m happy about where the group is mentally.”
The Badgers will now face the Ohio State Buckeyes at home on Sunday for the team’s final regular-season match before the Big Ten tournament starts on Nov. 4. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m., and the game will be broadcasted on BTN+.
