The Wisconsin men's soccer team notched their third win of the season last night, taking down Milwaukee at home by a score of 2-0.
Iñaki Iribarren led the way for the Badgers at McClimon, scoring both goals off setups from Andrew Akindele in the 3rd and 55th minutes, respectively. The Spanish midfielder's first score came off a corner kick set play, as Akindele whipped in the ball and Iribarren, standing tall at 6'2”, powered home a header to give Wisconsin an early lead. Iribarren then put away the game for good with his second-half goal, as Zach Klancnik lobbed a ball across the face of the goal after a cross from Akindele, and Iribarren poked it home to give the Badgers two goals in one game for the first time through their first 11 games of the season.
The win sets up Wisconsin nicely for the bulk of their in-conference schedule that they'll face in the coming weeks, starting with a showdown against Rutgers in Piscataway, New Jersey, this Friday. Rutgers has gotten off to a torrid hot start this season, as they opened their own Big Ten schedule unbeaten before taking down nationally-ranked (and presumed B1G favorite) Indiana on the road in Bloomington. Now holding an impressive 7-0-1 record and fresh off yet another victory over Penn, Rutgers should have plenty of momentum heading into their clash with the Badgers, especially as they look to defend their highest national ranking in years.
Friday's game — and the following match against Maryland — should reveal a lot about this Badger team. Managing just two conference wins last year and going winless in their first six games this season hadn't inspired much confidence for Bucky, but their recent form has been much better motivating. Over the past two weeks, Wisconsin has gotten wins against Butler and an underrated Marquette team before tying a quality in-conference foe in Michigan State this past Friday, to indicate the Badgers were much better than their initial record showed.
Forward Nico Rosamilia has led the way in just his freshman year for the Scarlet Knights, leading the team in goals, with three, and adding an assist. Fullback Thomas DeVizio and forward Ola Maeland have also provided vital production on the banks, with each chipping in a goal and a team-high four assists.
Catch the Badgers taking on Rutgers at 6 p.m. on the Big Ten Network+, as Wisconsin looks to move to 4-2-3, while the Scarlet Knights hope to advance to 8-0-1.
