After a physical home win over the Oregon Ducks, the Badgers (2-0) took down the Tennessee Lady Volunteers (1-1) on Sunday in another Madison scorcher. The heat had a visible effect on the players, and it quickly became a battle of strength and stamina. Tennessee was the more physically daunting team, with four girls standing at 5 feet 11 inches, and had a clear mindset to use that to their advantage.
From the beginning, the Lady Volunteers were aggressive, keeping the ball on the Wisconsin half of the field for a fair amount of the first half. Still, the Badgers were able to get off five shots in the first half, including a 17th-minute, far-post strike by last year’s Big Ten Freshman of the Year, sophomore midfielder Rose Lavelle.
Despite their high volume of shots and early advantage, the Badgers struggled to possess the ball for extended periods of time, and it came back to bite them in the second half.
The shots continued to come for the Badgers as they racked up seven more in the next period, but many of them came on breaks, and before they knew it, the ball was back on their side of the field. The Wisconsin defenders once again deserve a lot of credit for their performance, holding Tennessee to only five shots all game, but the struggle to keep the ball off of the UW half of the field wore on them as the game progressed.
They could only bend for so long before breaking, giving up the Tennessee equalizer in the 62nd minute on a poorly defended header. The Lady Volunteers sent it into the box on a cross, and only one Badger defender was there to contest the ball. The UT player put the close shot just inside the post and outside of redshirt senior goalkeeper Genevieve Richard’s reach.
With the game tied up, the Badgers became the aggressors in the final 25 minutes, rallying together and keeping the Lady Volunteers on their heels. Wisconsin had some very close shots late in the game, but could not connect, and the game went into overtime.
The mentality in extra time was more of the same, and the Badgers looked determined to put the game away. They quickly worked the ball around and got it to 5th year senior Kodee Williams, who dribbled through two defenders and around a third before sending a spectacular near-post strike for the game winner.
Head coach Paula Wilkins was confident in her team’s growth and their ability to succeed in overtime. Speaking to the media on Monday, she said “This year, when we were talking about overtime, it was a great calm about it. I was very confident because you could feel the energy from the players.
“They weren't panicked, and I think that talks about a lot of stuff we talked about in the off-season about positive self-talk and kind of creating our own success,” Wilkins said. “I think for us moving forward, then they know what to do in those situations, and I think those are always great learning lessons for a team early in the season.”
Wilkins knew she could rely on the acumen of her veterans. She continued “It's a very experienced team. Maybe that's why, walking into the game on Sunday, I was very confident with them. We actually, against Tennessee, I thought we were going to have a big challenge because their game on Friday, they got to play 24 players and rest a lot of players.”
“I think doing things off the field right, that's learned by being older and understand the pressures of the game come from that. It's shown by Kodee scoring a goal as a 5th year senior who wants her career to go a certain way,” Wilkins said. “I think that's a huge part. We have to keep talking about that.
“But on the flip side of that, I thought some of our younger players did a good job. Becca Harrison and Alexis Tye came in, and they showed some things this weekend that makes me excited for moving this group forward. I think there's a good balance there, and I think those guys are going to get better as the season goes on.”
The experience of the Badgers’ veterans and the growth of their young players makes a potent combination that can take a team far. Only time will tell how successful this team will be, but they have certainly had an encouraging start.
The team is trying to ride this momentum as they look to go 3-0 for the third straight season Friday at home against South Dakota State.
