Coming off their first win in the Big Ten the Badgers (2-1-1 Big Ten, 5-4-3 overall) were victorious again in a nail-biter against Purdue (1-3-0, 6-5-0) Sunday afternoon.
Purdue came out early in the game with a lot of offensive pressure and got a shot that went off the goal post in the seventh minute of the game. The Badgers answered the Boilermakers’ early pressure with some of their own, getting two shots on goal in the first 15 minutes.
The game slowed down after the 15th minute until senior midfielder McKenna Meuer scored of a free kick in the 32nd minute for Wisconsin. The Badgers continued to have a strong attack as junior forward Rose Lavelle had a bicycle kick in the 34th minute that was barely saved by the Purdue goalkeeper Erika Yohn.
The game went into the half with Wisconsin winning 1-0, but Purdue came out in the second half on the attack. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Caitlyn Clem made a pair of huge saves in the span of 10 minutes to keep the Boilermakers off the board.
Purdue put a lot of pressure on the defense in the closing minutes of the game, but were unable to tally the equalizer.
“I think we were a bit too nonchalant in the back, and I thought we gave them some opportunities on that alone and some communication issues,” UW head coach Paula Wilkins said of the Boilermakers’ late pressure.
For the Badgers, it was their third straight shutout and second Big Ten victory of the weekend in a 1-0 win.
“We are doing better on transitions,” Wilkins said of team’s defense during the past three shutouts. “We are meeting them a lot earlier and, I think that is making a difference because now we are further away from our goal.”
After struggling to score earlier in the season, the Badgers have combined for four goals in their last two games.
“We have asked them to do some different things in the midfield, and I think it just took us a little longer to figure it out,” Wilkins said.
The next game for the Badgers will come against Minnesota at 6 p.m. on Friday at the McClimon Soccer Complex.
