Minnesota Wins Big Ten Women’s Soccer Tournament Championship
Golden Gophers earn title in dramatic fashion via first penalty-kick shootout in finals history
WESTFIELD, Ind. – No. 7 seed Minnesota earned its third Big Ten Women’s Soccer Tournament title, and second in three years, with a dramatic shootout victory over top-seeded Penn State, 5-4 in seven rounds after the schools played to a 0-0 double-overtime draw in the championship game on Sunday at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana. With Sunday’s win, Minnesota will be the Big Ten’s automatic qualifier into the 2018 NCAA Championship.
It was the first Big Ten final ever decided on penalties and just the fifth to go to overtime (first since 2014), with the Golden Gophers becoming the fourth No. 7 seed to win the Big Ten Tournament title and the first since Wisconsin in 2005.
Minnesota’s Makenzie Langdok converted the decisive penalty kick in the seventh round of the shootout before Golden Gopher netminder Maddie Nielsen came up with a save on Penn State’s attempt to secure the win. Nielsen, who recorded shutouts in all three of Minnesota’s tournament games, was selected as the Defensive Player of the Tournament, while teammate April Bockin, who scored three goals for the Golden Gophers in the tournament and converted her penalty kick attempt in the shootout, was chosen as the Offensive Player of the Tournament.
The announcement of the 64-team field for the 2018 NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship will be made at 4:30 p.m. (ET) Monday live on NCAA.com.
2018 Big Ten Women’s Soccer All-Tournament Team
Katie Murray, Illinois
Sarah Stratigakis, Michigan
April Bockin, Minnesota
Emily Heslin, Minnesota
Maddie Nielsen, Minnesota
Meg Brandt, Nebraska
Devon Kerr, Ohio State
Amanda Dennis, Penn State
Ellie Jean, Penn State
Amirah Ali, Rutgers
Dani Rhodes, Wisconsin
Individual Awards
Offensive Player of the Tournament: April Bockin, Minnesota
Defensive Player of the Tournament: Maddie Nielsen, Minnesota