After an upsetting loss Friday against the Vanderbilt Commodores on their home turf, the Wisconsin women’s soccer team heads back out on the road this week as it faces Loyola Wednesday at 7 p.m.
The Badgers had a strong start to their season, winning their first four away games, which they have not done since 2005, before stumbling at home to Vanderbilt. Now, with six games under their belts, they are ranked No. 23 as they prepare for yet another road trip, this time heading to Chicago for their bout with Loyola.
As they begin diving back into waters away from home, head coach Paula Wilkins is looking to her younger players to carry the team.
“The players have been dynamic in flashes,” Wilkins said. “We have been talking a lot about consistency in practice and what their roles are.”
While the season may be young, it is quickly becoming apparent that sophomore McKenna Meuer will play a vital role if the team is to be successful.
Meuer was a member of the U18 USYS National Champion FC Milwaukee club team, a three-time all city team honoree and a 2011 National Champion. As part of the Badgers, she has appeared in 20 matches and started 19 in her young career. Last year she finished the season tied for the lead in game-winning goals, scoring one against Wednesday’s opponent, Loyola.
Redshirt junior defender Alexandra Heller says she is excited about what Meuer and the other young players will have to offer this season.
“They have all been doing really well,” Heller said. “They are really stepping up to the plate and we are all getting along great.”
As an added bonus heading into Wednesday’s match, Wisconsin will play with a chip on it’s shoulder after the disheartening loss at home in the annual PAC the MAC event.
“It was pretty bad,” Heller said. “Now our team is really looking forward to going out and winning tomorrow. We need to put that game behind us and continue on the winning streak we had at the beginning of the season.”
The biggest thing Wisconsin will need to remedy if it is to steal a victory away from home Wednesday will be patching up a defense that allowed four goals in its last showing.
“Team defending is going to be our biggest strength,” Meuer said. “We have been working a lot on it in practice. If one person gets beat, the next person is going to be able to step up.”
Excluding last week’s loss, the Badgers have been playing strong and have had no trouble scoring goals. Meuer believes the game against Vanderbilt will not indicate the direction of their season.
“We owe it to each other to make a statement that this was a fluke of a game, and that’s not the way we are going to let our season go,” Meuer said.
Meanwhile, Loyola has not had quite the track record that Wisconsin started with this season. With a total of two wins, two ties and two loses, Loyola has struggled to win consistently so far this fall. This upcoming match could be a game changer for both teams.
For the Badgers, last week’s loss could not have come at a better time, and Wilkins said it will provide inspiration for the team not to slip up again.
“We talk about whenever you have a loss if you don’t use it to get better, then obviously it is going to beat you twice,” Wilkins said. “So I think paying more attention to details [and] taking moments from this past game will help us prepare for this game and help us prepare for games in the future, especially in the Big Ten.”
