There are certain games in a team’s season that serve as season-defining moments.
These matches are looked back upon as either positive turning points where a team began to hit its stride or negative moments when a team failed to rise to the occasion.
Friday night’s Big Ten match at Nebraska has the potential to be one of those pivotal moments this season for the IU women’s soccer team and IU Coach Amy Berbary.
“Our goal all along has been to make the Big Ten tournament,” Berbary said. “You have to try to get some points every weekend to make the final eight.”
IU, 5-6-1 overall with a 2-2 mark in conference play, only has one conference match this weekend to try to pick up points. The Hoosiers have a bye Sunday after playing the Cornhuskers on Friday.
This makes getting a result on the road against Nebraska all the more important for IU. Nebraska boasts an 8-4 overall record after 12 games this season but finds itself tied with IU in the Big Ten standings.
The Cornhuskers and Hoosiers are currently tied for fourth place in the Big Ten standings, although each team has taken a different route to earning six points through four Big Ten games.
Victories against Michigan State and Ohio State by a combined 5-0 scoring margin demonstrated Nebraska’s offensive power. Of the 20 Cornhusker goals scored this season, eight have come from senior forward Jaycie Johnson. Additionally, junior midfielder Haley Hanson has scored five times.
“Nebraska is a very, very good team, and they play an interesting style,” Berbary said. “We need to keep possession because they are a very direct team. We’ll just need to keep the ball in front of them and not give it away in the middle of the field.”
In stark contrast to the way Nebraska has produced the majority of its goals this season, IU has received offensive production from a variety of sources. Nine different Hoosiers have scored this season, the most since 11 different players scored in 2013, the latest season in which the team qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Three different goal scorers played a part in last Sunday’s 3-2 home win against Wisconsin, which Berbary has stressed as a key element of the team’s improvement this season.
“We were very good and threatening in the final third against Wisconsin,” Berbary said. “It’s not just the goals. We kept fighting. That’s the type of stuff we have to have.”
A battle of freshman goalkeepers will also take place Friday evening at Barbara Hibner Soccer Stadium in Lincoln.
IU freshman goalkeeper Sarah L’Hommedieu has impressed since taking control of the starting job in late August. Her 53 saves this season are the second-most of any goalkeeper in the Big Ten.
However, Nebraska freshman goalkeeper Aubrei Corder has also performed well. Corder has held opponents to only 1.14 goals per game this season as a result of her 43 saves in net.
While Nebraska and IU have contrasting styles of play, Berbary said she plans to alter very little ahead of the game.
“I don’t think we are going to change much. We are just going to keep doing what we’re doing,” Berbary said.
