Marquette entered its rivalry match Sunday at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with expectations of bouncing back from the team’s 1-1 tie to Illinois State.
“Obviously it’s a huge rival team for us,” sophomore Maddy Henry told the Wire Thursday. “We want to go out there and show them who we are and kick their butts.”
Yet it was the Panthers (9-0-1) doing the butt-kicking Sunday, downing the 19th-ranked Golden Eagles, 2-1, for their first win over a ranked opponent since 2006.
“It’s hard to expect to win any game if you don’t compete for 90 minutes,” Marquette head coach Markus Roeders said. “We put ourselves behind the eight-ball and we can’t start playing the game once we’re down.”
The Golden Eagles (7-2-1) quickly found themselves in a position they haven’t been in almost a month: trailing an opponent. In the 19th minute, UWM senior forward Aubrey Krahn redirected a corner from Cassidy Blanchard past Henry for Krahn’s fifth goal of the season.
“In the first half we just didn’t come out with enough energy,” Kutey said. “It took us a while to get our rhythm down.”
Krahn got her second goal of the evening in the 77th minute, rocketing a shot off Henry’s hands and into the right corner of the net.
“You have a scramble going and she puts it away,” Roeders said. “They made the most out of their chances and obviously we didn’t.”
Jamie Kutey put Marquette on the scoreboard in the 86th minute with a shot from about 10 yards out, but it was a case of too little, too late.
“I kind of just ran behind their defenders and (Beard) slotted it through,” Kutey said. “I was able to just finish it.”
With the loss Sunday, Marquette has not defeated UWM since 2013 and the all-time series between the two schools is tied at 9-9-8.
UWM’s last win over a ranked opponent was when they ousted 16th-ranked Missouri, 1-0, in 2006. In the time since, the Panthers were 0-15-3 against ranked foes.
Marquette’s path will not get any easier, as the team’s next match will be next Sunday at Butler for its BIG EAST opener. The Bulldogs were sixth in the preseason poll but have already beaten 10th-ranked Texas A&M and tied 18th-ranked Notre Dame on the road.
“We have a lot to work on for sure,” Kutey said. “Our energy needs to be higher when we come out and we need to be able to play through the midfield.”
Roeders echoed his forward’s sense of urgency as BIG EAST play awaits a week away.
“We better show up in those games,” Roeders said. “Otherwise it’s going to be a long day; it’s going to be tough.”
