Maryland women’s soccer at Northwestern preview

Maryland women’s soccer will face Northwestern on the road for the first time since 2021 Thursday.

The match will be played at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium — the same stadium its football team temporarily calls home, as the Wildcats wait for the new Ryan Field.

In its last match, Maryland failed to score against a Big Ten opponent for the 13th-consecutive game, falling to Oregon, 2-0.

Thursday’s match from Evanston, Ill., will kick-off at 7 p.m. EST and stream on Big Ten Plus.

Northwestern Wildcats (5-5-1, 0-3-0 Big Ten)

2023 record: 9-5-4, 3-5-2 Big Ten

The Wildcats head into Thursday winless in Big Ten play, having lost to Purdue, then-No. 9 Penn State and then-No. 17 Ohio State.

In nonconference play, Northwestern fared well, defeating Boston University, Marquette, Toledo, Illinois State and then-No. 21 Virginia Tech. It only lost to Syracuse and Virginia, while drawing with Harvard.

Head coach Michael Moynihan is in his 13th season in Evanston and has led the Wildcats to five NCAA Tournament berths. Moynihan also led Northwestern to a Big Ten regular season championship in 2016.

Players to watch

Kennedy Roesch, freshman forward, No. 20 — Roesch is in her first season with Northwestern and has made an incredible impact so far. She has started in all 11 matches for the Wildcats and leads the team with four goals. Roesch also has an assist on the year, as she leads the team with nine points. She has attempted 26 shots, 11 of which have been on goal.

Josie Aulicino, graduate midfielder, No. 8 — Aulicino has recorded a team-high three assists and two goals in her fifth season with Northwestern. Last season, she posted six goals and seven assists. Aulicino was named to the All-Big Ten third team in both 2021 and 2022.

Caterina Regazzoni, junior midfielder, No. 13 — Regazzoni has three goals thus far in her third season with Northwestern. She has attempted 23 shots, 15 of which were on target. In 2023, Regazzoni tallied three goals and an assist, while in 2022, she totaled three goals and three assists en route to a Big Ten Freshman of the Year nod.

Strength

Shots. The Wildcats have outshot opponents, 145-79, this season and have 65 shots on goal — eighth-most in the Big Ten — while opponents have only posted 30 shots on goal. The Wildcats average 13.2 shots per game.

Weakness

Scoring on chances. Despite massively outshooting opponents, Northwestern is only outscoring opponents 13-11, as it has posted a 9% shooting percentage this season. Despite 44.8% of their shots being on target, only 20% of the Wildcats’ shots on goal end up in the back of the net.

Three things to know

1. Can the Terps fare better on the road? After dropping the last three matches, Maryland will play its first Big Ten road match. The Terps are 2-1-1 on the road this season, and hope to maintain that winning record.

2. Playing on a used field. Currently, Northwestern football, men’s soccer and women’s soccer all play at Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. It will be interesting to see how the field has been maintained with all of its usage.

3. Will Maryland’s defense regroup? Maryland has allowed 10 goals over the past three matches. The Terps only allowed nine goals in their previous eight nonconference matches. Maryland will need to play tighter defense on Thursday in order to prevent a fourth-straight Big Ten loss.