Wisconsin Ready for Big Ten Tournament Finale
November 06, 2005 | Women's Soccer
The seventh-seeded Wisconsin women's soccer team (12-8-2, 3-6-1 Big Ten) will battle No. 8 Michigan at 11 a.m. CDT Sunday in the championship game of the 2005 Big Ten Tournament. The title match will be broadcast live on CSTV.
How They Got Here
Wisconsin, who ended the regular season on a four-game winning streak, defeated No. 2 Purdue and No. 3 Michigan State in the first round and semifinals, respectively, to earn a chance to play for the Big Ten tournament title. Both the Boilermakers and Spartans defeated Wisconsin during the regular season.
The Badgers beat Purdue 3-0 in the first round Thursday. Senior Amy Vermeulen tallied her second career hat trick in the win. It was the third consecutive shutout for Wisconsin. Wisconsin then knocked off Michigan State 2-1 Friday in the semfinals. Vermeulen scored the game-winner with 17 seconds left to secure the win. Senior Jessica Ring also recorded her first goal of the year and classmate Marisa Brown assisted on both Badger scores. A First Time for Everything The No. 7 and No. 8 seeds will meet for the first time Sunday in the championship game.
UW Making Fifth Appearance in Title Game
Wisconsin will be making its fifth appearance in the finals of the Big Ten tournament. The Badgers' only conference tournament title came in 1994, the first year of the event. UW has also played in the championship game in 1995, 1996 and most recently in 2002.
Lucky Number 7
The No. 7 seed of the Big Ten tournament has made it to the championship game three previous times, with two tournament titles. In 1996, No. 7 Indiana defeated No. 1 Wisconsin to win the tournament. In 2002, No. 7 Ohio State also defeated the No. 5 Badgers 2-1. In 1998, No. 7 Ohio State fell to No. 1 Penn State, 2-0. The Wisconsin-Michigan Series Wisconsin leads the all-time series with Michigan, 9-7-1. The Badgers defeated the Wolverines 2-1 earlier this season in Ann Arbor.
The Wisconsin and Michigan programs will meet for the sixth time in the Big Ten tournament Sunday. Most recently, Michigan claimed a 1-0 win over the Badgers in the first round of the 2004 tournament. Wisconsin is 2-3 against the Wolverines in the Big Ten tournament.
Team Leaders
Senior Amy Vermeulen leads the team with 11 goals on the season. She also is first in points (11G, 7A) with 29. Marisa Brown and Allison Preiss each have eight assists while Vermeulen and Kara Kabellis lead the squad with 60 shots apiece. Lynn Murray has 74 saves on the season in the net.
On Fire
In the last six games, all Badger wins, Wisconsin has tallied 17 goals and has only allowed three. UW is looking to continue to build on its season-best six-game winning streak.
Brown Sets School Record
Senior Marisa Brown started her 89th career game Nov. 3 against Purdue in the first round of the Big Ten tournament to set a school record for the most starts. Former Badger Lauren Schmidt (1999-02) previously held the record with 88 career starts.
Vermeulen First in Assists
Fellow senior Amy Vermeulen holds a school record of her own. The Saskstoon, Saskatchewan native has seven assists on the year to take over first place on Wisconsin's all-tme assists list with 27 career helpers.
In addition, Vermeulen has moved into third place with 34 career goals and also is third in career points with 95. Kari Maijala (1988-91) is first on both lists, with 47 career goals and 112 career points.
Seniors Have Four 10-Win Seasons
Wisconsin reached the 10-win plateau in the regular season finale Oct. 30, giving the program its fourth consecutive season with at least 10 wins. The 2002 team had a 13-9-3 record. The Badgers finished with a 10-9-2 mark in 2003 and last season Wisconsin tied the all-time wins mark with a 16-6-1 year.
Working Overtime
The Badgers tied a school record with seven overtime games this season. UW also had a stretch of four consecutive extra-minute games from Sept. 23 through Oct. 2, which was the most in the history of the program. The Badgers are 1-4-1 in overtime games this season.
Comfortable on the Road
The Badgers certainly have had a rollercoaster season but UW has found comfort on the road. Wisconsin is 5-3-1 in away games this season, compared to a 4-5-1 record at the McClimon Soccer Complex. In addition, the Badgers are an undefeated 3-0 in neutral games.
Badger Captains
Seniors Marisa Brown, Katy Lindenmurth, Jessica Ring and Amy Vermeulen are serving as team captains for the 2005 season.
