UW Clinches Big Ten Tournament Berth
October 15, 2004 | Women's Soccer
Sophomore midfielder Kara Kabellis' (Homer Glen, Ill.) goal early in the second half was enough to propel the University of Wisconsin women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Michigan State at McClimon Soccer Complex and a spot in the Big Ten tournament.
Coming into the game tied for fifth in the league standings, the Badgers (10-4-1 overall, 4-4-1 Big Ten) needed to defeat ninth-place Michigan State to clinch a tournament berth.
And with Kabellis' fifth goal of the year-'a header following a corner kick by junior midfielder/forward Amy Vermeulen (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan)'-they did.
'This game had the flavor and feel of a Big Ten tournament game,' head coach Dean Duerst said. 'It was a great win, and it takes pressure off us.'
UW now sits in fifth place ahead of Northwestern, which beat Purdue 1-0 in overtime tonight. Michigan State (8-7-1, 2-6-1) remains in ninth and would need to win its last match and hope Purdue does not win either of its last two matches to get a berth.
Kabellis' four shots tied a game-high that was matched by the Spartans' Adrienne Treado. Michigan State edged UW 13-12 in shots, including 7-2 in the second half.
Freshman goalkeeper Lynn Murray (Marietta, Ga.) tallied six saves and made a couple of goal-saving plays to notch her third career solo shutout.
Wisconsin's defense did its part to help Murray, as the Spartans became more aggressive late in the match. UW countered by adding more defensemen.
'We dodged some bullets at the end,' Duerst said. 'Having more defenders helped clog up the spaces for Michigan State.'
The Badgers will close out the Big Ten season when they play host to No. 13 Michigan (9-4-2, 6-1-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday.
