Wisconsin Looks to Begin New Streak
October 10, 2006 | Men's Soccer
After seeing its six-game unbeaten streak come to an end last weekend, the Wisconsin men 's soccer team will look to begin a new streak when it travels to Milwaukee to play Marquette at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Valley Fields.
Prior to Sunday's 2-0 loss to Ohio State, UW (7-4-2 overall, 2-1-1 Big Ten) had posted its longest unbeaten streak in over a decade, since the 1995 team won its last seven games to win the NCAA championship.
There were many positive results from Wisconsin's run of success. First, the Badgers cracked the national polls for the first time in over four years last week. The ranking also marked the first time that Wisconsin had been ranked as late in the season as October since 1996.
Second, UW's team success translated into individual awards. Senior defender Hamid Afsari (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week while fellow senior Jake Settle (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) claimed his second Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week award on Oct. 2.
Although the unbeaten streak was snapped last weekend, head coach Jeff Rohrman is confident that his team can respond by beginning a new streak on Wednesday.
'Losing that game might have been a good wake-up call and a reminder that we can't get complacent,' Rohrman said. 'We have been just as focused and determined in practice this week as we have been all season and there 's no reason we can't start a new streak.'
Marquette (1-11-1) enters Wednesday's match having lost 11 straight games and having not scored a goal in five contests. The Golden Eagles are winless in their last 12 games dating back to their season-opening win against Loyola (Ill.) on Aug. 25. Marquette has been outscored 31-7 this season and is winless at home.
Wisconsin is 14-9-6 all-time against Marquette, including a 3-0 triumph last year in Madison. The Badgers have won the last three meetings.
Despite Marquette's record, Rohrman knows that his team will be in for a tough contest on Wednesday.
'In-state bragging rights are always on the line when you play one of the other state schools because the players from both teams grew up together and played club soccer together,' Rohrman explained.
'Marquette has had a difficult time in the Big East this season, so this is a big game for them and we need to understand that and come out ready to play.'
The Badgers and Golden Eagles face off at 7 p.m. at Valley Fields in Milwaukee. Fans can follow the game live via Gametracker by visiting gomarquette.com and selecting the appropriate game.
