Making a run for it
September 22, 2011 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 22, 2011
BY KARL ANDERSON
UW Athletic Communications
MADISON, Wis. -- Losing two straight games is not the way head coach Paula Wilkins wanted the Wisconsin women’s soccer team to enter Big Ten play last Saturday.
Riding a five-game winning streak, the Badgers lost at No. 14 Milwaukee, 2-1, in overtime on Sept. 11. Then on Sept. 14, Central Michigan came into the McClimon Soccer Complex and snapped UW’s nine-game home unbeaten streak with the game-winner coming in the 89th minute of a 2-1 contest.
In order to start a new streak, Wisconsin would have to get past No. 21 Penn State. History was against the Badgers, as the Nittany Lions owned a 13-2-4 record in the series.
However, the Badgers won last season in Happy Valley, and who better to take down the defending conference champion than the woman who helped guide that program from its infancy to a national title contender.
Behind a goal from Laurie Nosbusch and seven saves from goalkeeper Michele Dalton, the Badgers earned a hard-fought 1-0 win over PSU. It was the type of win that Wilkins, who was an assistant at Penn State before becoming head coach from 2000-06, thinks can propel Wisconsin to bigger and better things in 2011.
“Opening the Big Ten Conference with a win against the perennial champion is always good,” she said. “I think our biggest concern going forward is consistency. The two games prior to it, I don’t think we were at our maximum level.
“However, our play in the Penn State game set a standard for the team as to where they need to be, and I think if they can continue to be at that level, it’s going to be a good Big Ten season.
“Having so many returning players who have battled through some obstacles -- we’ve had some injuries -- where their competitive spirit is right now, I think is very good,” Wilkins continued. “I still think we’re going to continue working on the details in areas we need to get better, like set pieces or during the run of play.”
Wisconsin currently holds a 6-3-0 record and 1-0-0 mark in conference play, even though injuries have prevented the team from playing at full strength.
Sophomore midfielder Kodee Williams, who finished second on the team last season with four goals and four assists, is out for the entire season. Senior forward Erin Jacobsen, who was named second-team All-Big Ten last season, is also lost for the year after suffering a season-ending injury in the team’s exhibition game against Marquette on Aug. 13.
Others are working their way back from injuries. Sophomore defender Alexandra Heller did not play at all last season and did not make her Badger debut until the team’s game at Dayton on Sept. 2. Her start against Central Michigan was the first of her career.
Similarly, junior forward Paige Adams missed all of last season due to injury after being named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team in 2009. She has played in only four of the team’s nine games in 2011.
Having to mix-and-match lineups, Wilkins praised her team for filling roles they may not normally find themselves in.
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“People are doing what they’re being asked to do and sacrificing a bit of themselves because of the injuries,” she said. “They’re playing different roles that might not fit what they necessarily do, but they’re buying into it and buying into the team aspect, which is needed.
“We’re getting healthier now. We’ve got Ali Heller back in the back and Paige Adams is close behind and getting better. I think that’s a good thing, and I’m just really impressed with people being willing to sacrifice.”
As she has done in her previous four seasons at Wisconsin, Wilkins provided the team with a challenging non-conference schedule.
Wisconsin opened the season at defending national champion and top-ranked Notre Dame. The Badgers lost their 2011 debut, 2-0, but it still provided a good lesson, Wilkins said.
“Playing Notre Dame with one of the best forwards in the country in Melissa Henderson was challenging, but I think that prepared us to play [Penn State’s] Maya Hayes, who was the leading goal scorer in the country,” she said.
Hayes entered the game on Sept. 21 leading the nation in goals with 12 in eight games. Against the Badgers, she did not attempt a single shot.
Additionally, in the midst of the Badgers’ five-game winning streak from Aug. 28-Sept. 8, the Badgers won tough road games at Dayton, which has remained the Flyers’ only loss on the year, and at Cincinnati, which is 5-3-2.
“I think playing teams like Dayton and Cincinnati on the road will prepare us for the games on the road in the Big Ten,” Wilkins said. “Dayton [is] scrappy and it’s a hard environment to play in so that’s important to learn as we go into the Big Ten.”
Nosbusch is tied with freshman Cara Walls for the team lead in goals with four, while seniors Dalton and Meghan Flannery, a defender, have been key reasons why UW is outscoring its opponents, 13-9, in nine games this season.
“Scoring big goals in big games is what Laurie is known for and she’s been coming through again with that,” Wilkins said. “I’m excited to see her hit her stride in the Big Ten season because that tends to be when she does a lot better.
“On the opposite side, I think Michele has done well to make one or big two saves to keep us in a game and that’s what you need. Flan [Meghan Flannery] and Leigh Williams have added their part; I think the Penn State game was the best game Flan had played all season.”
Along with Walls, fellow freshmen Julia Roddar, Lauren Reid and Nikki Greenhalgh have played valuable minutes for the Badgers.
“I think they’ve been good,” Wilkins said of the freshman class. “One of the challenges during a season is that it’s a lot more physical and rigorous for them, so we’re trying to make sure we monitor them and keep them as fresh as we can because once classes hit, they start to get tired.
“I think Cara has really created some dangerous stuff, Julia is figuring it out more and more every game and we’re excited for those guys. They’ve been good in training, too. They raise the standard all the time.”
Penn State and Ohio State tied for the conference title last season, while Wisconsin was just one point behind. The 2011 season could be even tighter.
Wilkins said the conference is, “The messiest it’s been since I’ve been in the conference.
“Looking at the scores coming off the weekend, Nebraska adds an interesting element and an element that nobody knows about,” she continued. “I think Iowa doing really well and Illinois doing really well makes it challenging. There will be a lot of teams giving up a lot of games and I think the championship will be won by fewer points than it ever has.”
With the title up for grabs, Wilkins thinks her squad, which plays at Michigan State and Michigan this weekend, has the right makeup to be a conference title contender.
“I think we’re competitive in the top part,” she said. “Even with all the injuries that we’ve had, we have elements that are going to give people some problems because we play differently than a lot of other teams do.
“What I told the team was the effort they had against Penn State is the effort they need to have the whole season in order to be successful. I think if they could bring that effort and consistency, especially on the road and dealing with injuries, that’s going to make them challengers for the championship.”
