Huskers Seek Elite Eight Berth

After a dramatic 2-1 overtime victory over the No. 8 national seed Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, the Nebraska soccer team (14-8) heads east to Illinois this weekend where the Huskers will square off against the Fighting Illini (15-5-2) on Saturday at 5 p.m.

The Huskers advanced to this weekend's Sweet 16 match by posting two victories last weekend in Lawrence, Kan. Before showing great heart and determination in the win over Kansas, NU cruised by Oral Roberts, 3-0, in the first round of the tournament.

With the pair of victories, Nebraska improved its overall NCAA Tournament record to 14-7-1 and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the eighth time in the past nine seasons.

Junior Nikki Baker and senior Brooke Bredenberg provided the bulk of the offensive firepower for the Huskers, while sophomore goalkeeper Katie Wright and the Nebraska defense performed beautifully in allowing just one goal.

Baker recorded the first hat trick of her career by scoring all three goals in the Huskers' win over ORU. The Bixby, Okla., native created the first goal by herself, was assisted by Bredenberg on the second and drew a foul in the box and converted her first penalty kick of the year to complete her hat trick.

Baker's three goals tied the Nebraska NCAA single-game tournament record, while Bredenberg's assist gave her 10 points on the season, marking the first time in her four-year career she has reached the double-figure plateau for points.

Against the Jayhawks, Bredenberg scored her fifth goal of the season on a perfectly placed free kick from 30 yards out. The Jayhawks managed to tie the game in the second half, but the Huskers continued to fight despite a lack of depth, and sophomore Abby Penas found Baker in the fourth minute of the first overtime for the game winner.

Baker beat KU's All-Big 12 goalkeeper Meghan Miller with an unbelievable try from 30 yards out that Kansas Head Coach Mark Francis called a "once in a lifetime shot." Her goal was her fourth of the weekend and second consecutive game-winning goal. For the season, Baker now has five game-winning goals, tops on the team, and the sixth-best single-season total in school history.

Her four-goal weekend also gave Baker eight points through two games of the NCAA Tournament. Her eight points and four goals are Nebraska NCAA Tournament records, eclipsing the previous record of three goals and six points.

Saturday's contest between Nebraska and Illinois will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools.

Scouting Illinois (15-5-2)
Illinois was one of five Big Ten teams to make the 2004 NCAA Tournament and is one of two Big Ten squads still alive in the tournament, joining No. 6 national seed Ohio State.

The Fighting Illini advanced to the Sweet 16 out of the Texas A&M bracket. The Illini opened with a 2-0 victory over Rice and then upset Texas A&M, the No. 9 national seed, in a 2-1 come-from-behind victory.

Offensively, Illinois is led by first-team All-Big Ten selectioin Tara Hurless. In 22 games, Hurless has scored 12 goals and added nine assists to total 33 points. She leads the team in goals, assists, points, shots (88), shots on goal (38) and game-winning goals (seven).

Defensively, the Fighting Illini are led by first-team All-Big 12 defender Kelly Campbell, who has logged a team-high 1,816 minutes and 2003 first-team All-America goalkeeper Leisha Alcia.

In goal, Alcia has recorded 102 saves this season while posting eight shutouts. In 22 games, Alcia has allowed only 17 goals for a goals-against average of 0.78.

Nebraska and Illinois share four common opponents. Against Missouri, Kansas, Texas A&M and Purdue, the Fighting Illini posted a 4-0 record. The Huskers went 4-1 against those same teams. Against teams in the NCAA Tournament, Illinois compiled a 4-4 record including victories in the first and second round, while NU boasted a 6-5 record.

Nebraska in the NCAA Tournament
Nebraska has enjoyed great success in the NCAA Tournament dating back to its first appearance in 1996. Since 1996, the Huskers have:

Advanced to the second round in each of the last nine NCAA Tournaments.

Compiled a 14-7-1 all-time record in the NCAA Tournament.

Advanced to the Sweet 16 in eight of the past nine years.

Posted 10 shutouts in 22 NCAA Tournament games.

 

Nebraska's 2004 NCAA Tournament Recap
Nebraska is 2-0 and headed to the Sweet 16 for the eighth time in the past nine years after defeating Oral Roberts and Kansas, the No. 8 national seed, in the first and second rounds, respectively, of the 2004 NCAA Tournament.

Junior forward Nikki Baker recorded the first hat trick of her career against Oral Roberts, scoring all three goals in the Huskers' 3-0 win. Baker's career performance also tied the Nebraska single-game NCAA Tournament record for most goals in a game. Senior Brooke Bredenberg added an assist on Baker's second goal, but Baker's first goal was unassisted and her final goal came off a penalty kick.

Against Kansas, Nebraska showed tremendous heart to pull out a dramatic 2-1 overtime victory over the host Jayhawks. Bredenberg connected on a free kick from 30 yards out to put NU up 1-0 at halftime, but KU, utilizing a far deeper bench than Nebraska's, applied tremendous pressure on the Husker defense in the second half and managed to tie the game in the 68th minute on a goal by Jessica Smith.

Nebraskaa used pure determination to force the game into overtime, where Baker recorded her second consecutive game-winning goal off an assist from sophomore Abby Penas in the 95th minute to lift Nebraska into the Sweet 16.

Nebraska's 2003 NCAA Tournament Recap
Nebraska went 1-1 at last year's NCAA Tournament, marking the eighth straight season the Huskers picked up at least one victory in the tournament. The second-round loss to fifth-ranked Portland marked the first time in eight seasons that NU did not advance past the second round.

In the first round, the 21st-ranked Huskers won on a game-winning goal by Jenna Cooper with just 1:39 remaining in the game. No current Huskers recorded a point in the game, but goalkeeper Katie Wright recorded eight of Nebraska's 11 saves in her first career start in the NCAA Tournament.

In the second round against host Portland, the Pilots were up 2-0 at halftime and added two more goals in the second period before current Husker Brittany Timko scored an unassisted goal in the 81st minute to make the final score 4-1.

Breaking Through
Heading into the NCAA Tournament, Nebraska had been shut out in three straight games, a streak totaling more than 310 minutes.

In advancing to this Saturday's Sweet 16, the Husker offense got back on track and exploded for five goals in a pair of victories against Oral Roberts and Kansas.

NU notched three goals against ORU and became one of only two teams to score more than one goal against the Jayhawks.

Scoring Machine
Junior forward Nikki Baker scored four of Nebraska's five goals in the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament, including both game-winning goals.

Her game winner against Oral Roberts came in the sixth minute and she added a dramatic game-winning goal from 30 yards out on a perfect shot in overtime to lift the Huskers past Kansas.

Baker now leads the team with five game-winning goals and also ranks sixth on the NU single-season game-winning goals record list.

Stellar Defense
Nebraska's defense played outstanding last weekend in allowing only one goal in two games in the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament in Lawrence, Kan.

Even more remarkable is the fact that the defense has no substitutes and has one player who has moved back to defender from the forward position.

NU has lacked depth at defender all season, but the absence of freshman Sari Raber and sophomore Tanya Dennis - both of whom are currently competing for Canada at the Under-19 World Championships in Thailand - forced sophomore forward Abby Penas to not only switch to defender, but also record the first starts of her career.

Penas and the solid starting combination of juniors Sasha Andrews, Katie Bunkers and Aly Scace, along with sophomore goalkeeper Katie Wright, played brilliantly in the Huskers shutout of Oral Roberts and the team's 2-1 overtime victory over Kansas.

Saving Grace
Sophomore goalkeeper Katie Wright highlighted a brilliant effort by the Nebraska defense by recording a season-high nine saves in the Huskers' dramatic 2-1 overtime win over Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Wright's nine saves upped her season total to 101, making Wright just the second goalkeeper in school history to record more than 100 saves in a season.

Wright joins Erin Miller as the only other keeper to reach the 100-save milestone. Miller accomplished the feat twice as Nebraska's starting goalkeeper from 2001 to 2002.

Stat of the Week
With its 2-1 overtime win over the No. 8 national seed Kansas Jayhawks in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Nebraska is now 2-0-0 this season in overtime gamaes.

The Huskers also boast a 2-0-1 all-time record in overtime games in the NCAA Tournament.

The Streak Continues
The 2004 Nebraska soccer team continued the Husker tradition of excellence in the postseason.
In every season since 1996 - a streak totaling nine seasons - the Huskers have not only made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament, but have won at least one game to advance to the second round. The 2004 Huskers also advanced to the Sweet 16 for the eighth time in nine season.

Perfect Timing
Sophomore Abby Penas found a perfect time to contribute her first assist as a Husker.

Penas, a converted forward, has started the last three games at defender and played a crucial role in limiting Kansas to just one goal in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Against the Jayhawks, Penas went on the offensive, finding junior Nikki Baker in the 95th minute to set up the game-winning goal that propelled Nebraska to the Sweet 16.

Starting to Roll
Many people view the postseason as an entirely new season, a chance to wipe the slate clean and start over again. While that may oversimplify the effects of playing in a single-elimination NCAA Tournament, Nebraska has certainly opened its new season in grand fashion.

The Huskers entered the NCAA Tournament on a three-game losing streak and hadn't scored a goal in more than 300 minutes.

Two games into the NCAA Tournament, however, NU has put together back-to-back wins for the first time since the first week of October and exploded for three goals in the first round after scoring only two goals in its previous four games.

Timko Named Big 12 Player of the Year
Nebraska sophomore forward/midfielder Brittany Timko was named the Big 12 Conference Soccer Player of the Year last week. Junior defender Sasha Andrews and sophomore defender Tanya Dennis were also honored as first-team All-Big 12 selections, as Nebraska placed three on the first team, trailing only Kansas’ total of four.

Timko led the conference in nearly every offensive category. Her 15 goals, 13 assists and 43 points were all league highs, as were her 82 shots, 4.32 shots-per-game average, 2.26 points-per-game average and 0.68 assists-per-game average. The Coquitlam, British Columbia, native also ranked second with a goals-per-game average of 0.79 and was tied for fifth in the Big 12 with three game-winning goals.

In an outstanding season, Timko was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week three times, and also garnered three-time recognition on Soccer America’s National Team of the Week and Soccer Buzz’s Elite Team of the Week.

Andrews, a transfer from Southern Methodist, has started every game this season and has scored three goals and added four assists to total 10 points. She has also played a crucial role in the Huskers’ defense that is allowing just 1.25 goals per game and has recorded six shutouts in 2004. Andrews was also the only Nebraska player named to the All-Big 12 newcomer team.

Dennis is in her second year with Nebraska after only playing in two games last season because of injuries and her commitment to the Canadian National Team. Dennis started the year with a more offensive role, scoring three goals in the Huskers’ first three games including a career-best two-goal performance against Eastern Illinois on Sept. 3. She has moved into more of a defensive role as the season progressed and earned All-Big 12 honors at defender.

Nebraska’s three first-team selections were the most since four Huskers earned first-team honors in 2000.

In the Classroom
Five members of the Nebraska soccer team were among 80 student-athletes honored for their work off the field, earning first- or second-team academic All-Big 12 accolades. Three Huskers were named to the first team, while two more garnered second-team recognition.

Senior Lindsey Ingram and juniors Sasha Andrews and Katie Bunkers were each named to the first team. Ingram, a pre-nursing major from Littleton, Colo., also earned first-team honors in 2003, as did Bunkers, an advertising major from Sioux Falls, S.D.

Andrews, who is in her first season at Nebraska after transferring from Southern Methodist, was honored in her first year of eligibility as a nutritional science/dietetics major.

Juniors Vern Fitzgerald and Kari Hogan were each named to the academic All-Big 12 second team. Fitzgerald is a mild/moderate disabilities major from Lincoln, while Hogan is a family and consumer science major from Lakewood, Colo. Both were named academic All-Big 12 for the first time in their careers.

Nominated by each institution’s director of student-athlete support services and the media relations offices, the soccer academic all-league squad consisted of 63 first-team members and 17 second-team honorees. First-team members consist of those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, while the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.

Timko Named Finalist For Hermann Award
Nebraska sophomore Brittany Timko the Big 12 Conference Soccer Player of the Year, was named one of 15 semifinalists for the Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy, the official NSCAA Player-of-the-Year award for Division I.

Timko, who led the Big 12 in nearly every statistical category, has scored 15 goals, notched 13 assists and totaled 43 points this season. She tied the Nebraska record with five game-winning assists this season, and scored three goals in a game and added three assists in a game twice in 2004.

Representing Their Country
Three starters for the Nebraska soccer team - sophomores Brittany Timko and Tanya Dennis and freshman Sari Raber - are currently in Thailand competing for Canda at the Under-19 World Championships.

The trio will be available to rejoin the Huskers during the NCAA Tournament when Canada is finished competing in the championship.

Through three games, Canada is 2-0-1 and headed to the quartefinals as the No. 2 team out of Group A. The Nebraska combination of Timko and Dennis has accounted for seven of Canada's 12 goals.

Timko leads all goal scorers with six goals, while Dennis has added one.

Freshmen Meghan Hungerford and Jetta Sadusky, sophomore Abby Penas and junior Kari Hogan have stepped up in place of the Canadians leading the Huskers to a 2-1 record and a berth in this weekend's Sweet 16.

Baker’s Best
Junior forward Nikki Baker scored four goals in the Huskers' 2-0 showing in the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament, including a career-high three goals in the opener against Oral Roberts.

Baker owns a career-high 14 goals on the season and has a career-best 30 points. She is also the Nebraska record holder for most goals and points in both a single NCAA Tournament game and for an entire NCAA Tournament.

In 22 games, Baker has scored 14 goals, notched two assists?tying her single-season career high?and has produced 30 points. In her freshman campaign, the Bixby, Okla., native set career highs with nine goals, two assists and 20 points in 24 games.

For the regular season, Baker ranked fifth in the Big 12 Conference in game-winning goals (three), fourth in goals (10) and points (22), fifth in goals per game (0.56), fifth in points per game (1.22) and ninth in shots (47).

Timko Ties Record
Sophomore Brittany Timko, who is enjoying one of the best seasons in school history, moved into a three-way tie for first on Nebraska’s all-time single-season list by notching her fifth game-winning assist of the season in the Huskers’ 3-0 blanking of Texas Tech on Oct. 15.

Tough Decisions
The Nebraska soccer team is 7-6 in 2004 in games decided by one goal after pulling out a 2-1 overtime victory over the No. 8 national seed Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.

Six of Nebraska's eight losses have come by one goal. Half of those six losses have come by a score of 1-0, including a loss to Oklahoma on Oct. 24.

The Huskers have grown accustomed to playing close games. Ten of Nebraska's last 15 games - and 13 of NU's 22 games overall - have been decided by one goal. The Huskers' last two losses came by a score of 2-0, marking the only times this season NU had lost by more than one goal.

The last two games also marked only the second and third times, respectively, that Nebraska trailed by more than one goal at any point in a game this season.

Road Warriors
Although the Huskers only played seven road games this season, NU was very successful on the road. The Huskers finished 6-1 on the road this season, after suffering their only road loss of the season at Oklahoma.

Five of NU’s six road victories have come in Big 12 Conference play, with the Huskers recording victories over league co-champion Kansas twice (1-0 and 2-1 OT), Iowa State (3-2), Missouri (2-1 OT) and Oklahoma State (2-0). Nebraska’s other road victory came in a 3-2 come-from-behind win over Creighton on Sept. 21.

Tale of Two Halves
The Nebraska soccer team has been accustomed to starting fast this season. The Huskers have scored first in 11 of their last 16 games and have outscored the opposition by an overwhelming 28-10 margin, including a 3-0 advantage in the first and second rounds of last weekend's NCAA Tournament.

NU has held a halftime lead in 15 of its 22 games (68 percent). After eliminating Kansas on Sunday, Nebraska is now 13-2 this season when leading at the half. The Huskers have also scored first in 14 games this year and are 12-2 when scoring first.

While Nebraska has dominated the first 45 minutes, the Huskers have not fared so well in the second half. NU has still outscored its opponents, 18-16, in the final 45 minutes, but have been outscored, 9-2, in the second half of Nebraska's eight losses.

10,000 Maniacs
In Nebraska's final home game against Colorado, a crowd of 1,006 pushed the season attendance to 10,749 fans, marking the seventh time in the 11-year history of the program that Nebraska has drawn more than 10,000 fans in a single season.

The crowd last Friday was the third-largest crowd of the season and was also the third crowd of more than 1,000 people in 2004.

The Huskers opened the season against traditional power North Carolina in front of 3,640 fans and drew 1,008 fans for a match against Texas Oct. 8.

The crowd that witnessed the North Carolina game was the third-largest crowd in school history and also bumped Nebraska attendance over 100,000 in the history of the program.

NCAA Rankings
In the final regulgar-season NCAA statistical rankings released before she left for the Under-19 World Championship, sophomore Brittany Timko was in the top 10 in five categories and in the top 15 in two others.

Timko was tied for first with 13 assists, ranked fourth with 43 points, was sixth with an assist- per-game average of 0.72, was eighth with a point-per-game average of 2.39 and ranked ninth with 15 goals. She was also tied for 18th with a 0.83 goals per game average.

Timko ranked fourth in the country for most assists in a game, as she had three against Northern Colorado and also against Eastern Illinois. She also ranked sixth in points in a single game with nine against Northern Colorado.

Players of the Week
Junior Nikki Baker was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 12. The award was the fourth Big 12 offensive player-of-the-week honor and fifth player-of-the-week honor this season for Nebraska. Both are league highs.

Sophomore Brittany Timko was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week for a third time this season on Sept. 28.

Timko also earned player-of-the-week honors on Sept. 21, and is the first player in school history to earn three player-of-the-week awards in the same season.

Timko and sophomore goalkeeper Katie Wright each earned Big 12 Player-of-the-Week honors for the week of Sept. 7. Timko was named the offensive player of the week and Wright was named the defensive player of the week.

Timko has also been named to Soccer America's National Team of the Week and Soccer Buzz's Elite Team of the Week three times in 2004. She was named to the teams in each of the weeks she was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week.

Big 12 Rankings
Nebraska finished the regular season ranked in the top five in the Big 12 Conference in 11 categories.

As a team, Nebraska led the league in corner kicks (135), ranked third in shots (343) and shutouts (six), ranked fourth in goals (44) and goals per game (2.32), points (122) and ranked fifth in assists (34), assists per game (1.79), goals allowed (24), saves (87) and goals-against average (1.25).

From an individual standpoint, sophomore Brittany Timko led the league in points (43), goals (15), assists (13), shots (82), shots per game (4.32), points per game (2.39), assists per game (0.68) and ranked second in goals per game (0.79) and fifth in game-winning goals (three).

Junior Nikki Baker ranked eighth in shots (51), fourth in goals (10), fifth in game-winning goals (three) and sixth in points (22) and goals per game (0.53).

Sophomore goalkeeper Katie Wright ranked in the top six of every goalkeeping category. The Mission Viejo, Calif., native ranked third in shutouts (six), saves (82) and saves per game (4.32), fourth in shutouts per game (0.32), fifth in save percentage (.774) and sixth in goals-against average (1.25).

Head Coach John Walker
Nebraska Head Coach John Walker is in his 11th year as coach of the Huskers. Since starting the program in 1994, Walker’s teams have posted an impressive 186-51-8 record. He recorded his 175th career victory in a 3-0 win over Purdue on Sept. 5.

Walker’s teams have won at least one game in the NCAA Tournament for nine consecutive seasons after a 3-0 win over Oral Roberts on Saturday. The Huskers have also advanced to eight of the last nine Sweet 16s and have finished the season in the NSCAA/adidas top 25 poll in each of the last eight seasons.

Under Walker, the Huskers have become a perennial power. He has led the team to three Big 12 regular-season titles and five Big 12 Tournament titles since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996, including a sweep of both titles in 1999 and 2000.