2017 Schedule | Printable Schedule

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin women's soccer team announced its 2017 schedule on Thursday, which features 11 home contests and a total of six games against teams who made the 2016 NCAA tournament.

The Badgers are scheduled to host nine regular season games and two scrimmages at the McClimon Complex this year, including six against Big Ten Conference opponents.

Wisconsin will face six 2016 NCAA tournament teams, five teams that finished in the top 25 and five teams that won at least 70 percent of their conference schedule with six-plus wins. Eight of the teams on Wisconsin's slate won at least 10 games last season.

"A great non-conference slate will prepare us for a competitive Big Ten schedule," head coach Paula Wilkins said. "With our returning talent and incoming freshmen, the early games will test us and allow us to get better. We will have a great blend of experience and youthfulness of the team and we are excited for next season."

UW returns seven regular starters including goalkeeper and two-time All-Big Ten honoree Caitlyn Clem, 2015 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Victoria Pickett and members of the 2016 All-Big Ten freshman team, Dani Rhodes and Allie Winterfield.

Seven Big Ten teams finished in the top 35 of the RPI rankings, including Wisconsin, and the Badgers will face four of the other six teams this season.

Senior Day will be celebrated on Sunday, Oct. 8 against Indiana at 1 p.m. CT.

All times listed below are in central standard time and the season records are from the 2016 campaign.

Schedule Breakdown

Kentucky (5-9-4 overall, 1-7-3 SEC)
Aug. 18, McClimon Complex, 7 p.m.

The Wildcats finished the 2016 season with a 5-9-4 overall record and 1-7-3 in the Southeastern Conference. UK will be under new leadership as Ian Carry, who has been with the program the last four seasons as an assistant coach, will take the reigns as the third head coach in Kentucky history.

As freshmen last season, Evangeline Soucie and Marissa Bosco were named to the SEC Freshman Team. Soucie had a season-high 11 saves in two different matches vs. No. 5 Florida and at No. 21 Columbia. Bosco scored three goals and had five assists on the season.

Stanford (18-2-1 overall, 10-1-0 Pac-12)
Aug. 20, Marquette Valley Fields (Milwaukee, WI.), 5 p.m.

Stanford won its second consecutive Pac-12 title and earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament. The Cardinal advanced past the first round of the tournament for the 11th-straight season in 2016.

Three Cardinal players earned National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America honors, five earned NSCAA All-Pacific Region honors, while eight earned All-Pac-12 recognitions. The coaching staff, led by Paul Ratcliffe, was named the NSCAA Pacific Region Staff of the Year and Ratcliffe earned the seventh Pac-12 Coach of the Year accolade of his career. Stanford finished sixth in the final NSCAA rankings.

Creighton (9-6-2 overall, 4-5-0 Big East)
Aug. 24, McClimon Complex, 7 p.m.

Creighton finished the 2016 campaign with a 9-6-2 overall record and went 4-5-0 in Big East play. The Bluejays tallied 37 goals with 116 shots on goal to opponent's 29 with 97 shots on goal.

The Bluejays return Taryn Jakubowski, who finished second on the team in goals (4), points (14) and tied for the team lead in assists (6), earning her a spot on the All-Big East Freshman Team.

Northern Illinois (5-11-5 overall, 4-6-2 MAC)
Aug. 27, McClimon Complex, 1 p.m.

Northern Illinois went 5-11-5 on the season in 2016 and 4-6-2 in conference. The Huskies had a strong run in the Mid-American Conference Championships with a string of upsets, including a win penalty kicks over the No. 1 seed, Ball State, and a 3-2 win over fourth-seeded Western Michigan.

NIU, who began the tournament as the No. 8 seed, fell in a 1-0 heartbreaker in the MAC championship game to Kent State.

Virginia (15-5-2 overall, 6-2-2 ACC)
Aug. 31, Charlottesville, VA., 7 p.m.

The Cavaliers had a great 2016 season that saw them go all the way to the third round of the NCAA tournament, where they lost 2-0 to No. 3 Georgetown. Virginia finished No. 11 in the final polls with a 15-5-2 overall record, a 6-2-2 ACC record and a flawless 11-0-1 home record.

Virginia tallied 52 goals on the season while holding opponents to 18 goals on the season. Virginia outdid opponents in shots (395-125), shots on goal (159-59) and corner kicks (143-59). The Cavaliers lost their leading scorer in Alexis Shaffer but return Veronica Latsko and Taylor Ziemer, who each notched eight goals on the season.

William and Mary (10-8-2 overall, 4-4-1 CAA)
Sep. 3, Williamsburg, VA., 12 p.m.

William and Mary ended the 2016 season with a 10-8-2 record and 4-4-1 record in conference play. The Tribe made it to the Colonial Athletic Association semifinals but fell 3-0 to top-seeded Northeastern.

Rachel Moore returns for the Tribe after earning her second NSCAA third-team All-Mid-Atlantic Region honors in her junior season in 2016. She helped William and Mary to its NCAA record 36th consecutive winning season with a team-high six goals, five assists and 17 points.

Drake (12-4-3 overall, 2-3-1 MVC)
Sep. 7, Des Moines, IA, 7 p.m.

Drake clinched a 12-win season in 2016 with a .711 winning percentage. The Bulldogs picked up 10 non-conference wins last season and had 29 goals on the season. The 12 wins were the most for the program since the 2012 season and the Bulldogs set a program record with 11 shutouts on the year.

The Bulldogs return 2016 MVC All-Freshman Team honoree Cassie Rohan, who saw action in 16 games. DU also returns Rachel Wanninger who played in 18 games and scored two goals with three assists in her junior year (2016).

Minnesota  (16-3-4 overall, 7-1-3 Big Ten)
Sep. 16, McClimon Complex, 4 p.m.

Last season, Minnesota took home the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles for the first time in program history. UM returns 16 letterwinners from last year's team and adds six freshmen to the roster. The Gophers finished the highest of any Big Ten teams in the RPI rankings at No. 20 and in the final NSCAA polls at No. 15.

The Gophers will be without four key members of last year's squad as Simone Kolander, Rashida Beal, Tarah Hobbs and Josee Stiever graduated. Kolander was named the 2016 Big Ten Forward of the Year while Beal was named the Defender of the Year. Hobbs broke the program record in shutouts with 33 in her career and Stiever had earned a spot on the All-Big Ten first team in 2016. Sydney Squires will be looking to fill those gaps after leading the team in goals during conference play with five goals and eight total on the year. She was named the Most Outstanding Offensive Player on the All-Big Ten tournament team and was joined by centerback Tori Burnett, who was named the Most Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year.

Minnesota's only loss in conference play was to Wisconsin. Rhodes scored the golden goal in the 98th minute of action. Clem captured the 1-0 shutout in net and recorded three saves.

Michigan State (7-10-1 overall, 4-7-0 Big Ten)
Sep. 21, McClimon Complex, 7 p.m.

MSU finished the season with a 7-10-1 record and 4-7-0 conference ledger. UW shut out the Spartans in their only meeting in the 2016 season, 1-0, with the lone goal coming from Micaela Powers in the first minute of action off of an assist from Emily Borgmann.

The Spartans graduated nine seniors last season but return their leading goal scorer in Jamie Cheslik, who had five goals and four assists. Savanna Wotjanowski returns in net for MSU after splitting time in goal last season and tabbing 68 saves for a save percentage of .819.

Michigan (10-5-5 overall, 6-3-2 Big Ten)
Sep. 24, McClimon Complex, 1 p.m.

Michigan made it to the semifinals of the Big Ten tournament and the first round of the NCAA tournament after tallying a 10-5-5 record and 6-3-2 Big Ten record. The Wolverines returned to the big dance for the first time since 2013 but lost a heartbreaker in penalty kicks to Illinois State, where Wisconsin's new assistant coach Marisa Kresge just finished a one-year stint as the volunteer coach.

UM had its best Big Ten start in program history with five-straight wins. The Wolverines had wins against two ranked opponents. Reilly Martin will return for Michigan for her junior season after having a breakout season in 2016, leading the team with 24 points on seven goals and 10 assists.

Maryland (3-15-1 overall, 1-10 Big Ten)
Sep. 29, College Park, MD., 2 p.m.

Maryland registered a 3-15-1 overall record in 2016 and a 1-10 Big Ten record.

UM returns seven starters and adds a top-25 recruiting class for the 2017 campaign. Top goal scorers Chelsea Jackson (9) and Jarena Harmon (8) return with defensive standouts Hope Gouterman and Jlon Flippens.

Rutgers (12-5-6 overall, 4-2-5 Big Ten)
Oct. 1, Piscataway, NJ., 12 p.m.

Rutgers went 12-5-6 in the 2016 season and 4-2-5 in conference play. Last season, the Badgers used a second-half rally to take down the Scarlet Knights, 2-1, at the McClimon Complex.

Rutgers closed the year with a No. 25 ranking in the final NSCAA poll and No. 21 in the RPI. The double-digit winning season was the program's 23rd in 33 years and their NCAA bid was the program's 11th. In the program's fifth-straight NCAA bid, RU advanced to its third second-round game and fell to Georgetown, 2-0.

Purdue (4-12-1 overall, 2-8-1 Big Ten)
Oct. 6, McClimon Complex, 7 p.m.

Purdue finished the 2016 season with a 4-12-1 record and 2-8-1 in Big Ten action.

Wisconsin defeated PU last season in West Lafayette, 3-1, behind goals from Sydney McGinnis, Payton Wesley and Steph Fabry.

Indiana (7-9-4 overall, 4-4-3 Big Ten)
Oct. 8, McClimon Complex, 1 p.m.

Indiana's season ended in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal against Minnesota after the Hoosiers advanced to the tournament for the first time since 2013.

Macy Miller will be a key contributor after making the Big Ten All-Freshmen Team in 2016. She put up 19 shots, with nine being on goal.

Illinois (6-11-2 overall, 3-6-2 Big Ten)
Oct. 12, Champaign, IL., 7 p.m.

The Illini, who finished with a 6-11-2 overall record in 2016, saw eight players score at least one goal last year. UI had six shutouts and outshot opponents 228-215. Illinois was led in scoring by Patricia George and Kara Marbury, who will both return to the Illini this season.

All seven of the Illini freshmen made at least one appearance in 2016 while Alicia Barker and Kelly Maday started in all 19 games. Illinois graduated 11 seniors that scored nine of Illinois' goals in 2016.

Northwestern (16-3-4 overall, 7-1-3 Big Ten)
Oct. 15, Evanston, Ill., 3 p.m.

Northwestern finished at No. 18 in the final coaches poll and 24th in the final RPI ranking. NU is coming off of a historical season that saw the program have its best run since 1998. Northwestern advanced all the way to the Sweet 16 where the Wildcats season ended with a 1-0 loss to Duke.

NU punched its ticket to the NCAA tournament for the second-straight year behind stellar play from Lauren Clem. The senior played 23 games in goal for a total of 2,169 minutes and a 0.29 goals against average.

Iowa (8-11 overall, 2-9 Big Ten)
Oct. 21, Iowa City, Iowa, 7 p.m.

Iowa boasted an 8-11 record in 2016 with two wins in conference play. The Hawkeyes return sophomore goalkeeper Claire Graves. The Noblesville, Indiana native posted an 8-11 record in net with four shutouts.

The Hawkeyes also return Karly Stuenkel, who scored the second-most goals last season with five goals, including one game-winner.

Penn State (23-3-2 overall, 8-2-1 Big Ten)
Oct. 25, McClimon Complex, 7 p.m. CT

Penn State made it all the way to the second round of the NCAA tournament but fell at the hands of No. 15 Virginia, 3-0. PSU capped the 2016 season with a 23-3-2 record and finished 26th in the final RPI rankings.

The Nittany Lions return young talent in goalkeeper Amanda Dennis, who earned Big Ten All-Freshman Team honors in 2016 after starting all 21 matches at goalkeeper and tallied seven solo shutouts.