Talented freshman Jenny Dunn is tied for the team lead with five goals in 2005.Talented freshman Jenny Dunn is tied for the team lead with five goals in 2005.

'Cats Hit the Road for Conference Matches at Michigan, Michigan State

Oct. 5, 2005

EVANSTON, Ill. - Coming off two narrow defeats at home last weekend, the Northwestern women's soccer team (7-4-1, 0-3-1) will look to get back on track when they travel to take on Michigan (5-4-2, 1-2-0) and Michigan State (6-3-3, 2-1-0). The Wildcats will square off against the Wolverines at 6 p.m. CT in Ann Arbor, Mich. Friday, Oct. 7 before traveling to take on the Spartans in East Lansing, Mich. at 11 a.m. CT Sunday, Oct. 9.

"I think this weekend will be an exciting weekend for us," head coach Jenny Haigh said. "I'm expecting two great games out of the 'Cats this weekend. Friday night should be a high-paced, quality battle. Both ourselves and Michigan are coming off two losses this weekend and will be hungry for a win. We'll certainly have our hands full. Michigan is a great team, but I am really excited because I know we're going to be ready to get a big win on the road. And of course Michigan State is always tough. I think they really were the better team last year when we played them there and I'm looking forward to a better match-up this year. I think State will see a much different Northwestern team than they saw a year ago."

Recapping the Weekend:
Playing without two of their top offensive weapons, the Wildcats dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 3 Penn State last Friday. Northwestern was without the services of its leading scorer, Kelsey Hans and senior Julie Lipinski. Nonetheless, the Wildcats gave the third-ranked Nittany Lions all they could handle in the one goal defeat. Penn State's Tiffany Weimer recorded both goals for Penn State while senior Tabitha Lowey scored the lone goal for Northwestern with an assist from freshman Krystal Patterson.

Then on Sunday, Northwestern came out on the short end of the stick once again in a 1-0 loss to Minnesota, despite outshooting the Gophers, 26-7. The game was played a majority of the time on Minnesota's side of the field as the Wildcats showered the Minnesota defense with shot after shot. Luck was not on NU's side that afternoon as two shots by Hans hit the cross bar with another deflecting off the post. Minnesota took full advantage of one of its rare scoring opportunities when Lindsey Schwartz found Becky Dellaria on a break away for the games' only goal in the 76th minute.

A Glance at the 'Cats:

  • The Wildcats will look to get back to their winning ways after two narrow defeats at home. These Wildcats are no strangers to close games with nine of NU's 12 games being decided by one goal or less. Sophomore Kelsey Hans, freshman Jenny Dunn and senior Tabitha Lowey are tied for fifth in the Big Ten and share the team lead with five goals apiece. Hans also has three assists for a team-best 13 points and is fourth in the Big Ten with 46 shots, a 4.6 shot per game average. Jeanette Lorme also has been consistent spark offensively with three goals and three assists for nine points - including two game-winners vs. UW-Milwaukee and Baylor. In all, 12 different Wildcats have found the scoring column in either goal or assist fashion.

  • With five goals this season, Hans is tied for second on NU's all-time list with 20 career goals. She is on pace to shatter the mark of 29 held by Stephanie Erickson (1994-97).

  • As a team the Wildcats are third in the Big Ten in shots (196), points (63) and goals (23) and are tied for second in goals per game with 1.92. The `Cats are outshooting their opponents, 205-139, and are outscoring the opposition, 23-15.

  • In goal, junior Whitney Jones spouts a 7-4-1 record to go with three shutouts and 53 saves, good for third in the conference.

  • Jenny Haigh is in her fifth season as head coach of the Wildcats. The Wildcats have been a force at home under Haigh, going 17-5-3 in the last two-plus seasons. That includes an 8-1-2 mark in 2004 and a 4-2 mark this season. The Wildcats made a nice leap in the Big Ten standings and regionally in 2004, finishing with 10 wins for the first time since 1998 and qualifying for the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since Haigh's first season in 2001. NU went 5-4-1 in conference play, its first Big Ten winning record since 1998.

    • Scouting Report:
    Michigan:     Like Northwestern, Michigan also dropped two conference games last weekend by identical scores. The Wolverines were bested, 2-1, at Indiana Friday and 1-0 at Purdue Sunday. Melissa Dobbyn leads the team and is tied for third in the conference with seven goals. She also has three assists and is third in the Big Ten with 17 points. Therese Heaton is second on the team with five goals and three assists while Danelle Underwood rounds out the top scorers with three goals and one assist. Megan Tuura and Madison Gates have shared time in goal, with Tuura getting a majority of the minutes. Tuura has started eight games with a 4-3-1 record and has recorded 38 saves compared to 15 goals allowed. Debbie Rademacher is in her fifth season as head coach of the Wolverines with a 145-91-23 record over 11+ seasons at Michigan. The Wolverines have made eight straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the elite eight in 2002.

    Michigan State: The Spartans went 1-1 over the weekend with a 5-1 loss at Purdue before rebounding to get a win at Indiana (1-0) Sunday. MSU's other Big Ten win came against Ohio State, 1-0, back on Sept. 25 in East Lansing. The strength of the Spartans this season has been the play in goal by Nicole Gales (6-3-3) who leads the Big Ten with six shutouts and is second with 57 saves, compared to just 10 goals allowed in 12 starts. Emma Harris leads the Spartan attack offensively with six goals and one assist for 13 points. She also has four game-winners. Tom Saxton is in his 15th year as the head coach of the women's soccer team, having twice been named Big Ten Coach of the Year.

    Series Information:
    Michigan leads the all-time series with Northwestern, 9-3-1, and won last year's meeting, 3-2, in Ann Arbor. Michigan State also leads in its all-time series, 7-3-2, and also won the meeting last season, 3-2, in East Lansing. The Wildcats last defeated the Spartans back in 1999 (1-0) and battled MSU to a 1-1 tie back in 2002 in Evanston.

    The Rankings:
    Northwestern enters the weekend ranked 10th out of 55 teams in SoccerBuzz Great Lakes Region Poll. Michigan and Michigan State are fifth and sixth, respectively. Other Big Ten teams in the top 15 include Illinois (3rd), Purdue (4th), Minnesota (7th), Wisconsin (8th) and Ohio State (13th).

    Next Up:
    The Wildcats will be back in action at home next weekend when they host Indiana at 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14 and Purdue at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 16.