The once revivable season is starting to look worse and worse for Badger men's soccer. After two straight shutouts, Wisconsin has to come up with answers quickly.
The Badgers (0-2-0 Big Ten, 1-6-1 overall) have not won since August 31, a game in which they easily handled Xavier at home 4-0. Head coach John Trask has talked about the inexperience of his squad throughout the season with hopes of quick and drastic improvement. However, the team has yet to click.
Wisconsin faced intrastate rival Marquette on the road Wednesday and MU proved to be the better team. The Badgers fell to the Golden Eagles 2-0 and had just two shots in the second half. Freshman forward Mark Segbers, who led the team in shots, continues to be a young offensive threat.
Despite Wisconsin's lack of second-half offensive productivity, it is hard to take away from the skill and consistency of the Marquette soccer team. The Golden Eagles are No. 12 in the country and have only allowed three goals this season. The Badgers next test should not be as difficult.
Wisconsin returns home Saturday to play a struggling Michigan (0-1-2, 1-5-2) team who is looking for its first win on the road this season. The Wolverines have been in a remarkable scoring drought since September 12. They have not scored a goal in the last four games and have only scored four goals thus far on the season. Michigan, much like Wisconsin, has not recorded a win since the month of August.
Unlike Wisconsin, however, Michigan has a seasoned roster. Only three Wolverine players have scored this season and all three of them are junior standing or older. Redshirt junior midfielder Colin McAtee leads the team with two goals.
The game Saturday could go either way and the more resilient team will prevail. Both teams are in desperate need of a win.
Kickoff for the Saturday contest against Michigan is set for 7 p.m. at the McClimon complex.
