The University of Wisconsin Badgers men’s soccer team (4-5, 1-3 Big Ten) defeated the UW-Milwaukee Panthers (2-5-6, 1-0-3 Horizon League) 2-1 in the battle of I-94 .
The interstate battle is always one to watch, Badgers versus Panthers, the fight to claim I-94. The Badgers and Panthers have met 25 times since 1995, with Wisconsin having a winning record of 14-6-5.
Though the Panthers put up a good fight, they couldn’t hold on to the strength of the Badger offense.
The stakes were high for all 90 minutes, and the Badgers knew what was on the line as they battled to defend their I-94 title. Shortly after kick-off, the Badgers quickly took control of the match with a goal in the seventh minute of play by senior midfielder Ola Arntsen, assisted by freshman defender Isaac Brown-Samper and junior forward Markie Hrvojevic.
But the Badgers weren’t finished with the first half yet, less than 15 minutes later Wisconsin put another one past the Panther goalkeeper, junior Nic Diana. This goal was scored in the 19th minute of play by Hrvojevic, assisted by Arntsen, putting Wisconsin ahead 2-0 going into halftime.
This is when Milwaukee started to pick up the pace, most notably graduate student forward Bienvenu Djunga, who played the full 90 minutes of the game and held the Panther attack on lockdown.
.sno-68e74af33e2c5 {
background-color: #ffffff;border: 5px solid #888888;box-shadow: -1px 0 2px 0 rgb(0 0 0 / 12%), 1px 0 2px 0 rgb(0 0 0 / 12%), 0 1px 1px 0 rgb(0 0 0 / 24%);margin: 30px auto; float: none;}
.sno-68e74af33e2c5 h5 {
color: #000000;
}
The Panthers came in hot in the second half, proving they were still in the game. This motivation rocked the Badger defense.
The Panthers shook the net with a goal in the 57th minute of play by freshman forward Jack Bretzmann, assisted by Diana to set the score 2-1, with the Badgers still on top.
The remainder of the way consisted of lots of back and forth play, putting pressure on Milwaukee’s Diana and Badger goalkeeper, sophomore Matisse Hérbert. But as the final minutes ran out, the Badgers remained on top, coming out with a 2-1 win to claim the title of I-94 champions.
Wisconsin is set to face Rutgers Oct. 10 at 6 p.m. in Piscataway, NJ. The Badgers are hoping to increase their win streak in the Big Ten, currently with a record of 1-3 (Big Ten). The two teams have met 14 times since 2014, with Rutgers holding a winning record of 7-6-1.