The schedule rarely ever plays out the way a team expects it to.
Northwestern probably did not foresee scoring only one goal in its first four games of Big Ten play and losing three of them.
But the Wildcats have overcome early season adversity before. They shut out six of their last eight opponents last season to secure the seventh seed in the Big Ten tournament.
A streak like that usually is not repeatable, but sure enough, NU have stormed back this year, winning three of their last five. They now control their own destiny with one game to play after splitting a pair of games this weekend.
“We are more excited than nervous,” coach Stephanie Erickson said. “We’ll see how the week goes, but we are in a way better position now that we can control our own situation than if we could not. We have to put our heads down and not worry what everyone else is doing and just play our game.”
The Cats (9-8-1, 4-5-0 Big Ten) had a dramatic 3-2 overtime victory at Iowa on Friday and lost 2-0 at No. 25 Minnesota in harsh weather conditions on Sunday. NU is tied for fifth place in the Big Ten with one game to play – at Wisconsin on Friday. A win or tie will secure a Big Ten tournament berth. But a loss, could potentially end the Cats’ season depending on how other teams perform in the coming week.
NU’s fate is in its own hands.
The Cats blew two leads in Friday’s overtime victory over the Hawkeyes but still managed to earn the win. Tied at one nearing the end of regulation in the 86th minute, sophomore forward Sam Greene took a touch pass from senior defender Laura Janowitsch and gave NU the lead.
With four minutes to respond, the Hawkeyes (9-9-1, 3-5-1) were rewarded for their last-minute effort thanks to a perfectly placed shot from 30 yards away by Stephanie Hyink in the 89th minute to force overtime.
But the seniors would not let NU settle for a tie or a loss in the end. Senior forward Jenny Dunn sent a cross to midfield and senior midfielder Amanda Hoffman headed it into the goal in the 106th minute for the game winner. The seniors’ unwillingness to accept defeat, and possibly an end to the season, showed in the final crucial minutes of the game.
“They were great Friday night,” Erickson said. “There was a senior involved in every goal situation. They have shown a sense of urgency to get things done. They’re playing like they don’t want to end their season. It’s what you need out of your seniors.”
Minnesota (17-2-0, 7-2-0) proved to be a tougher test, not necessarily because of a discrepancy in talent but because of the Cats’ inability to adjust to unfavorable weather conditions.
With the wind pushing strongly against them in the first half, NU had trouble getting the ball out of its half of the field. The Golden Gophers took advantage of a flustered defense with two second half goals and the Cats could not respond, missing three shots wide.
“They just capitalized on their two best scoring opportunities and we could have done a better job capitalizing on ours,” Hoffman said. “I’m not going to blame it on the weather, but conditions like that made it harder to play our style of soccer.”
Regardless of the defeat, the Cats still managed to move up in the Big Ten standings over the weekend. With one game left, it’s their season to lose.
That’s just how they would have drawn it up.
“We have alittle more urgency heading into this week’s game,” Hoffman said. “But we’re confident in the fact that we can get the job done as long as we can prepare well for this week. Now, tied for fifth, we’re sitting in a good place going into Wisconsin. We’ve got to rely on ourselves more than for others to lose.”
