BOBBY JOHNSON | STAFF REPORTER
A playoff spot in the Big East Tournament is at stake for the Butler women’s soccer team when it battles Marquette University at the Butler Bowl on Friday in its final regular season game.
The women are looking to improve on their 2-4-2 record in Big East play thus far. They are 1-0-2 in their last three games and need a win in order to have a chance at getting into the Big East tournament.
Senior defender Stephanie Kaylor said the team knows what it needs to do.
“We need those three points,” Kaylor said. “Getting those three points next week will really give us an advantage when it comes to tournament time. 
Marquette was last year’s Big East Conference Champions and is currently in 4th place in the conference with a record of 5-2-1.
Kaylor said the team is not intimidated by Marquette’s powerhouse reputation, but instead will use it as motivation.
“It makes us want to come out harder and play our game better,” Kaylor said. “We use that to our advantage.”
In order to conquer Marquette, junior midfielder Sophia Maccagnone said that the team does not need to do anything out of the ordinary.
“We need to just come out as hard as we always do and realize that this is one of our biggest games of the season so we just need to keep focused and play our game,” Maccagnone said.
Senior forward Elise Kotsakis said that the team has been playing good of late, but it needs to convert on late chances.
“We need to just put away our chances and push until the end and not give up our position when we are up a goal,”Kotsakis said.
Early goals will be the key when the team takes on Marquette, Kaylor said. She said that they need to get ahead from the start and hold the lead if they hope to win the game.
Maccagnone said the team’s unity has been strong throughout the season, and this mindset needs to continue down the final stretch.
“I think that we have really come together and all have all gotten on the same page of how mentally tough we need to be as well as physically tough,” Maccagnone said.
In what could be her final game, Kotsakis said the team needs to understand the importance of the game and go into with confidence in order to come out victorious.
“I think that we have the ability to outplay them,” Kotsakis said.
