No. 9 Women’s Soccer Continues Road Swing at Minnesota

ST. PAUL, Minn. ––  No. 9 Northwestern (8-1-1, 2-0-0) continues Big Ten play when it travels to Minnesota to take on the Golden Gophers (5-4-1, 1-1-0) Sunday at 1 p.m. CT on B1G+. The 8-1-1 start is the program’s best since 2016.

Northwestern comes into the contest off a high-scoring affair against Nebraska. The Huskers ended the sixth-longest shutout streak in Northwestern program history (446-minutes and 17-seconds) in the first minute off a Regan Raabe goal. The ‘Cats responded quickly and often, first in the eighth minute off a Caterina Regazzoni goal. In the 25th minute, Ella Hase beat her defender to lob a ball into the box, where Meg Boade finished it off. Four minutes later, Aurea del Carmen added a third goal to make it a 3-1 lead. The Huskers grabbed one back in the dying moments of the first half. Meg Boade added another goal and Caterina Regazzoni added another assist in the 70th minute to put away the 4-2 victory.

‘Cat Facts

• The No. 9 ranking is the highest since September 28, 1998 when the Wildcats were also ranked 9th
• Mia Raben has not allowed a goal in 349 minutes and 27 seconds
• The Wildcats have scored three goals in the first half in back-to-back games
• In four of the past five games, Northwestern has scored a goal in the first eight minutes
• NU’s six-game winning streak is the fourth-longest in program history
• The ‘Cats eight-game unbeaten streak is tied for third-longest in program history
• Northwestern is one of two 2-0-0 teams in the Big Ten (Wisconsin)

Minnesota is coming off a Big Ten win themselves after defeating Indiana 3-0 at home on Thursday night. The Golden Gophers were the first team to score on the Hoosiers this season, tallying three goals in a ten minute span in the second half. Minnesota is fueled offensively by Sophia Boman, who’s started every game this year and was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week on September 13. The junior has tallied three goals and three assists this year. At goalkeeper, Megan Plaschko has played every minute of all ten games for the Golden Gophers, holding a .750 save percentage with four shutouts.

The Gophers lead the all time series 19-9-2. The most recent meeting took place on October 17, 2021, when the Gophers defeated the ‘Cats 1-0.

The Wildcats return home to Martin Stadium Thursday night against No. 4 Rutgers at 7 p.m….