Northwestern Hosts Nebraska in Big Ten Quarterfinals Sunday

10/27/2016 1:36:00 PM | Women's Soccer

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS: #3 NORTHWESTERN VS. #6 NEBRASKA
DATE	OPPONENT	TIME	LOCATION	LIVE STATS	WATCH
Oct. 30	Nebraska	3:00 p.m. CT	Evanston, Ill. (Martin Stadium)	SideArm Stats	Big Ten Network BTN Plus
Social: Twitter (@NUWSoccer and @NU_SportsLive) \| Instagram (@NUWSoccer) \| Facebook Get Tickets Here

EVANSTON, Ill. -- The third seeded Northwestern Wildcats (14-1-3, 7-1-3 B1G) will host the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, facing the Nebraska Cornhuskers (11-5-3, 5-3-3 B1G) at Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 30, at 3 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.

2016 Big Ten Tournament Bracket

The match can be followed with live stats on NUSports.com, and scoring updates will be provided on the @NU_SportsLIVE twitter account, where fans will find the most up to date news and content.

SCOUTING NEBRASKA
• Nebraska earned the No. 19 spot in this week's RPI Rankings, released on Oct. 24, which is the best ranking by a Big Ten team this week.
• Nebraska enters Sunday's game with 11 wins this season, which surpasses the win totals from each of the last two seasons.
• Jaycie Johnson leads the team in goals scored (11) and points (24). She is tied for the third-most goals by a Big Ten player this season.
• The Huskers defeated Iowa 1-0 on Wednesday night to secure a spot in the Big Ten Tournament. Johnson scored the game's lone goal to mark the 42nd of her career.

EN ROUTE TO THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
The Wildcats secured a share of the Big Ten regular-season title after defeated Illinois in overtime, 1-0, on Wednesday night in Evanston to mark the first conference championships in program history. This is the third-straight Big Ten Tournament appearance for Northwestern.

No. 20 Northwestern Wins First-Ever Big Ten Championship! #B1GCats

RECAP: https://t.co/5aOo43KAGa pic.twitter.com/D94FnCr7ko
— Northwestern Soccer (@NUWSoccer) October 27, 2016

#B1GCATS WIN FIRST-EVER BIG TEN TITLE
No. 20 Northwestern clinched a share of the Big Ten Championship for the first time in program history with a golden goal to defeat Illinois, 1-0, Wednesday night at Martin Stadium. Sophomore Kayla Sharples scored the game winner for the 'Cats on a wild play after a corner kick in the 98th minute. The Wildcats moved to 14-1-3 overall and tied the program-record for most regular season wins, set in 1998 by head coach Marcia McDermott.

Recap of 'Cats Win Over Illinois
Head Coach Michael Moynihan Post-Game Interview
Nandi Mehta Post-Game Interview
Kassidy Gorman Post-Game Interview

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (All Times are Central)
Oct. 30
Quarterfinal 1 - #1 Minnesota vs. #8 Indiana (2 p.m.)
Quarterfinal 2 - #4 Michigan vs. #5 Wisconsin (3 p.m.)
Quarterfinal 3 - #2 Penn State vs. #7 Rutgers (Noon)
Quarterfinal 4 - #3 Northwestern vs. #6 Nebraska ( 3 p.m. on Big Ten Network)

Nov. 4 (Semifinals)
Quarterfinal 1 Winner vs. Quarterfinal 2 Winner (2 or 4:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network)
Quarterfinal 3 Winner vs. Quarterfinal 4 Winner (2 or 4:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network)

Nov. 6
Championship Match (1 p.m. on Big Ten Network)

HOME SWEET HOME
The Wildcats will look to defend their home turf as Northwestern has not lost a game at Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium this year to hold a home record of 9-0-1 in 2016. In addition, Northwestern has conceded just one goal through 10 games at Martin Stadium and is the only Big Ten team to go unbeaten at home.

BETWEEN THE PIPES
Junior goalkeeper Lauren Clem has been extremely reliable in goal for the Wildcats this year. She has played every minute this year and has anchored a defense that has recorded a program-best 14 shutouts. Northwestern's goals against average of .302 tops the NCAA, while Clem's save percentage (.925) leads all Division I goalkeepers. On Oct. 4, Clem was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after leading the Wildcats to shutout draw against Ohio State. The junior recorded a career-best nine saves en route to her third DPOW award.

Against Illinois, Clem recorded her program-best 36th career shutout which ranks second all-time among Big Ten goalkeepers.

NCAA RPI REPORT
The NCAA released its RPI report on Monday and the Northwestern women's soccer team checked in at No. 24 in the country. Five Big Ten teams currently sit among the top 25, while eight rank among the top 50.

RPI, or Ratings Percentage Index, is a metric used by the NCAA to rank teams based upon wins and losses within a team's strength of schedule. The ranking takes into account opponents' winning percentages and the winning percentages of those opponents' opponents to calculate how strong a team's record is against the strength of the teams they have faced.