Badgers Advance To Big Ten Semis
November 07, 2002 | Women's Soccer
The Wisconsin women's soccer team (11-7-3) defeated host Michigan State, 1-0, Thursday night in the first round of the 2002 Big Ten Tournament. It is the Badgers fourth-straight win and their first Big Ten postseason victory since 1996. UW did advance to the semifinals in 2000, but advanced on a shootout after tying Purdue.
'I'm very proud of my team overall,' coach Dean Duerst said. 'And you have to give credit to Michigan State. They're an awesome team; they really played with some confidence today. Our team in the second half changed gears a little bit and really started to knock the ball around. Today's game was a good example of two very good teams going at it.'
Thursday's game seemed headed for a shootout after the first half. Wisconsin had several opportunities and fired six shots to MSU's four in the first stanza. But MSU's keeper Stacy Heller came up with three saves and UW 's Kelly Conway had two to make it a 0-0 game at the half.
'We knew we didn't play that great of a half, ' senior forward Jess Wolff said. 'We said `there are a couple simple things that we need to do better and we'll beat this team: getting in behind them and getting on the loose balls.'
The Badgers improved on those couple simple things in the second half and it got them on the board at 52:13. Sophomore Amy Vermeulen tallied the lone goal for the Badgers with her team-high fourth game-winning score. On the play, Wolff knocked the ball to Jenny Kundert in the middle who flicked it to Vermeulen on the left side. Vermeulen took a couple steps toward Heller, went to flip it up over Heller, but she came out to stop the ball. Vermeulen slipped around Heller and fired it home.
'It was a tremendous goal,' Duerst said. 'It was a great play between all three of our forwards. That's something we've been building on, to connect up top better.'
Conway posted her second-consecutive and fifth total shutout of the season, making four saves. Kundert's assist gives her 12 on the year, the most assists by a Badger since Theresa Senn tallied 18 in 1983.
'We're peaking at the right moment,' Wolff said. 'I really think our pregame [ritual] is getting us really fired up for these games. And in these last four games, we've just played really well. The confidence builds every game because we find a way to win.'
The Badgers and Spartans faced off under the lights for the first-time ever at MSU. Michigan State's Old College Field lacks permanent lights and lower removable lights were brought in for the Big Ten tourney. The lower lights created some dark areas and unfamiliarity for the players, but in the end, the Badgers and Spartans were able to concentrate on soccer.
'After a while you just forget about it,' commented Wolff on the field's lighting.
Wisconsin plays under the lights again tomorrow night, facing Illinois at 5:30 p.m. Eighth-seeded Illinois pulled off the upset of the first round, if not the tournament, knocking off two-time defending postseason champion Penn State to advance to the semifinals. Wisconsin defeated Illinois, 1-0, during the regular season.
