The 3rd Man In

Panthers lose to instate rival on the road

In a rematch of last season’s NCAA Tournament first round matchup, the Milwaukee Panthers hit the road to face the Wisconsin Badgers in a late season nonconference battle. It was a back and forth contest that saw few scoring opportunities for both team, but a Badgers’ goal in the 65th minute was the difference, handing the Panthers a 1-0 loss on Wednesday evening.

Despite outshooting Wisconsin, the Panthers (5-9-2) were unable to capitalize on some outstanding opportunities, failing to find the back of the net for the eighth time this season.

Milwaukee only had two shots on goal, but Wisconsin’s goalkeeper easily saved both of those attempts. However, the Panthers had a few shots that were solid opportunities, that sailed just wide of the net.

In the 60th minute, Kyle Neumann almost netted his first goal of the season, but it went just wide of the net.

Just minutes after the Badgers were able to get on the scoreboard, Declan Rodriguez nearly tied the match up in the 67th minute. Petter Ingebrigtsen volleyed a corner kick off the post, and the rebound went right to the feet of Rodriguez, who sent the shot just wide.

This obviously wasn’t the result the Panthers were looking for against their instate rival, but at least this was only a nonconference game. Defensively, the Panthers played well, but their offensive attack continued to struggle on their execution. Milwaukee will have to play better in their final two Horizon League regular season matches in order to pick up victories and to hopefully make the conference tournament.

Up next, the Panthers will travel to Valparaiso, Ind. to face the Crusaders on Saturday evening in a must win situation, as they attempt to claim a seed in the conference tournament.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *