LINCOLN, Neb. – The Indiana Women’s Soccer team (13-5-1, 6-5 Big Ten) closed out the regular season on Friday afternoon with a 3-1 loss on the road against No. 18 Nebraska. The Hoosiers will enter the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 4 seed and will play at 2:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday against an opponent to be determined by Saturday’s results.

 

“We are disappointed that we didn’t get the result we wanted today,” Indiana head coach Amy Berbary said. “But the good thing is that the season is not over and we are guaranteed to play at least one more game. So we will regroup and get ready for Big Ten Tournament, which is something that is going a new and exciting experience for these players and this program.”

 

The weather certainly played a role throughout the game, with strong winds effecting the ball in the air. A strong rain storm in the second half add to the difficulty with the wind, making conditions less than perfect.

 

For the game, the teams both registered 10 shots, with four of those being on goal. Indiana drew five corner kicks to just two for Nebraska.

 

In the first half, Indiana registered a number of strong scoring opportunities, with Rebecca Candler, Kayleigh Steigerwalt and Jordan Woolums putting pressure on the NU goal but unable to find the net. Then Nebraska got on the board first in the 34^th minute to take a 1-0 lead into the locker room at halftime.

 

Coming out of the locker room, the Hoosiers came out strong and it was Candler that was taken down in the box and Indiana was awarded a penalty kick. Lisa Nouanesengsy stepped up and drilled it home to tie the game at 1-1 in the 47^th minute. For Nouanesengsy, it was her 10^th goal of the season and 23^rd of her career while improving to 3-for-3 in her career on PK’s.

 

The 10 goals are the most in a season by an IU player since Kristin Arnold scored 10 in the 2007 season and are tied for the fourth-most in a single season by a Hoosier.

 

The Huskers then tallied goals in the 67^th minute and the 85^th minute to put the game out of reach.

 

Shannon Flower made one save in goal for the Hoosiers while Emma Stevens made three saves for Nebraska.

 

The win gives Nebraska its first-ever Big Ten regular season title in women’s soccer and ends Penn State’s run of 16 consecutive regular season championships.

 

The Big Ten Tournament begins on Wednesday, Nov. 6, on the campus of the University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill. Indiana, playing as the No. 4 seed, will play the No. 5 seed at 2:30 p.m. ET and the game will be streamed on BTN.com. After Friday’s results, the No. 5 seed is still undetermined but if Ohio State defeats Michigan on Saturday, then IU will play Ohio State. However, if Ohio State loses at Michigan, then the Hoosiers will play Illinois in the quarterfinals.

 

The appearance in the Big Ten Tournament will be the first since 2007 for Indiana.