Despite a career-best eight saves from sophomore goalkeeper Julie Burton and a stonewall defense, the Butler women’s soccer team saw its season come to an end with a 1-0 loss to No. 15 Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the semifinals of the Horizon League Soccer Championships.

“We played extremely well,” sophomore Ali Backscheider said. “It didn’t work out in our favor, but we’re happy with how we played.”

Milwaukee junior midfielder Helen Steinhauser scored the lone goal of the match in the 35th minute, and it was enough to let the Panthers (18-2-0, 8-0-0) slip by with the win.

On the goal-scoring play, freshman midfielder Kelsey Holbert ran the ball into the box and then found Steinhauser at the near post. Steinhauser took advantage, finding the back of the net with a one-touch shot.

The Bulldogs (8-10-2, 3-5-0) shut down the Panthers’ attack in the second half but were not able to generate an effective offensive effort.

Photo by Maria Porter

By the end of the match, Milwaukee held a 17-6 advantage in shots and had seven corner kicks to Butler’s one.

Freshman forward Elise Kotsakis recorded Butler’s lone shot on goal.

“We have to score to win, and we didn’t score,” Backscheider said.

Despite the loss, the Bulldogs were able to silence Milwaukee All-American forward Sarah Hagen throughout the match. Hagen is second in the nation with 24 goals.

“We shut her down and took her out of the game,” junior forward Katie Griswold said. “[Sophomore midfielder] Anna [Ventimiglia] completely dominated her.”

The Bulldogs also had three fewer fouls and seven more saves than the Panthers.

With the season over, the Bulldogs already are looking forward to next fall.

“We played really well with just one senior, and that just shows what kind of team we’re going to have next year,” Griswold said.

Photo by Maria Porter

The Butler women’s soccer team played two matches over the weekend, beating Eastern Michigan at home 2-1 before traveling to Eastern Illinois and coming away with a 3-2 victory.

The Bulldogs (4-2) got off to a slow start Friday versus Eastern Illinois, giving up two goals in the first 25 minutes.

Junior Kristin Germann accounted for both Eastern Illinois goals, and Butler found itself facing a 2-0 halftime deficit.

“It was a pretty unlucky situation,” sophomore defender Ali Backscheider  said.  “The ball got behind us, and we got broken down.”

Putting pressure on the Panthers (0-4-1) with a more attacking formation, the Bulldogs got their first breakthrough when sophomore Nikki Hafele scored a header in the 54th minute.

Junior Katie Griswold wasted no time in extending Butler’s lead, scoring a penalty kick just two minutes later.

The game-winner came from freshman Elise Kotsakis in the 69th minute.

With a lead, the Bulldogs were able to switch back to a more conservative formation and hold on for the victory.

Sophomore Jackie Hafele said coming back against the Panthers was simply a matter of the team believing in each other and in themselves.

“The coaches were very positive, and they knew we would win if we played our game,” Hafele said.  “Once they instilled that in us we were all like, ‘Yeah, we can do this.’”

Two days earlier, the Bulldogs played host to Eastern Michigan, picking up a 2-1 victory.

With the game knotted at 1-1, Jackie Hafele scored a header on a corner pass from freshman Stephanie Kaylor.

“I knew it was going to be our last chance, and I just got a head on it,” Hafele said.  “I knew I had to be ready once my name got called.  It was a great ball, and I just kind of pinned my mark off and scored.”

The goal gave Butler the win and kept Eastern Michigan (0-3-1) winless.

Despite the pair of wins, the Bulldogs realize there is room for improvement.

“One of our main goals is to get a shutout or at least try not to get scored on as early,” Backscheider said.

The Bulldogs will take the field again this weekend when they play Southeast Missouri State and Louisville in the University of Kentucky Tournament.