#9 Iowa Soccer upset by Wisconsin in Iowa City

As the list of undefeated teams across the country dwindles, the task of keeping a zero in the loss column gets tougher and tougher. The 9th-ranked Iowa Soccer team entered the night as just one of three teams that remained unbeaten, but a hungry Wisconsin side came to town looking for the upset. They’ll head back to Madison in celebration. Behind two second half goals, the Badgers handed the Hawkeyes their first loss of the season by the final score of 2-1.

“The reality is, I don’t think any of us thought we were going to go undefeated throughout the year,” said head coach Dave Dilanni. “That’s very difficult to do at this level and with the schedule we have. Doesn’t mean I want to lose, but the reality is, I’d rather lose now than in the postseason.”

The match started off very much in favor of Iowa. Dave Dilanni’s squad was forceful with their attack, earning three corner kicks and totaling three shots in the first 14 minutes. Although they weren’t rewarded with a goal in the normal run of play, a handball in the box by Wisconsin sent Maggie Johnston to the penalty spot in the 19th minute. She slotted her PK attempt past Wisconsin GK Drew Stover to put the Hawkeyes on top 1-0.

Johnston buries it 😤

No. 9 Iowa 1, Wisconsin 0#Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/EDhtBjIdKa

— Hawkeye Soccer (@HawkeyeSoccer) October 11, 2024

Despite leading by a goal, Iowa did not appear to have full control of the game. Late in the first half, and into the second half, it seemed like Wisconsin started to control the tempo of the game. That led to the Badgers earning three corner kicks and two shots in the first couple of minutes out of halftime.

“They started doing some things to us tactically that we talked about at halftime, made a little bit of a system change, but we started slow. We’ve been starting the second half slow most of the year.”

A veteran laden Iowa team that has been consistent all season long all of the sudden looked very out of sorts and disconnected. The game became a battle in transition and the Badgers looked like the better team over the final 45 minutes. Coach Dilanni wasn’t sure what led to the second half struggles, but said they will review the film.

“They’ve been very consistent this year, maybe we got the coaching wrong, I don’t know. We’ll all look back and see what we could have done better.”

Wisconsin was able to equalize in the 74th minute. A miscommunication between defender Millie Greer and goalkeeper Macy Enneking led to a loose ball in the box. Kenzie Roling was forced to go for a risky challenge on midfielder Maia Richters and she was called for the foul, awarding Wisconsin a penalty kick. Forward Aryssa Mahrt stepped up and converted her PK to tie the game at one goal apiece. The failure to communicate in the box was one of many instances where the Hawkeyes did not look like themselves in the second half.

“I think there were a few moments where individuals lacked some discipline,” said Dilanni. “We just looked like a group that was very disconnected, both offensively and defensively, and that’s going to happen, but I thought we had moments to be composed and brave to move the ball and make them work a bit and we didn’t. We gave the ball away a decent amount and as the game went on, the game got really stretched, and we knew that Wisconsin would do pretty well in that space.”

Just moments after earning the foul that led to the equalizer, midfielder Maia Richters delivered a 77th minute goal that stunned the home crowd. A long ball into the box from Jenna Baumann initially was won by a header from Maggie Johnston, but the Hawkeyes were unable to clear it out of harm’s way and Richters made the Iowa back line pay. Two goals in the span of 3:25 was enough to shock Iowa on their homefield.

“Defensively, I think we need to be more compact and be as a group,” said Dilanni. “We were very individualized in terms of like, the front two are pressing and then everybody else is sitting back, and the game just got really big. You can only do that for so long against good teams.”

The final stats were very even, with Iowa holding a 51% advantage in possession. Iowa outshot Wisconsin 9-8, but both sides managed just three shots on goal. Stats aside, the Badgers looked like the better team more the majority of the final 45 minutes.

“I thought we were off today for parts of the game. That doesn’t make us a bad team and doesn’t make it a bad week. We have a chance to bounce back (on Sunday).”

“They’re a very resilient group. They’re sad and crying, and so that means they care, and that means that they felt like they could have done better, and that’s okay. They get the rest of the night to be able to feel sorry and then they’ve got to move on. By tomorrow, we need to see a team that is resilient and mature and ready to play on Sunday.”

Up Next: The Hawkeyes will travel to Piscataway for a match with the 15th-ranked Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 12:00pm CT on BTN+.