Nov. 6, 2008
Northwestern Head Coach Stephanie Erickson
“We executed brilliantly in the first half. We had the wind and used it to our advantage. We lost some momentum in the second half and it was tough playing into that breeze. You need to give a lot of credit to Minnesota. They are a tremendous team and will do a great job representing the Big Ten in the NCAA Tournament.”
“We didn’t meet our expectations heading into the tournament, but we definitely saw progress throughout the season. When you look at the big picture, we are moving forward, and a lot of that credit can go to our seniors.”
Northwestern Senior Midfielder Amanda Hoffman
“We really went for it in the first half, and we got the early lead. We didn’t do a good job of holding on to that lead, but we fought hard until the end. I’m really proud of how we battled today.
“Minnesota is a great team. They are one of the best in the country. Our team really wanted to extend the season for us seniors, but it just didn’t work out today.”
Minnesota Head Coach Mikki Denney Wright
“That wind was a factor today. I didn’t realize it until we had it in the second half.”
“I was trying to rotate them all in the first half to get them at least 15 minutes rest in the center because they do so much work. It’s tough to play two games in a row. “
“Our players have a sense of confidence and feel good about goal scoring. We were in Northwestern’s backfield twice in the first half and almost scored so I knew that we could break them down. The good thing about those seniors is that they don’t get rattled by much. “
Minnesota Senior Midfielder Claire Grimwood
“Coach (Denney Wright) lit a fire under us at halftime, and the second half was really a different game for us.”
“We all have different roles on the team. Everyone understands their role and holds each other accountable.”
“When we came in the Minnesota program finished in the bottom three or four in the Big Ten every year. We had the mentality that we were (Coach Denney’s) first freshman class and we had to come in and make a difference, because when we were seniors we were going to win the Big Ten.”
Minnesota Senior Midfielder Kaitlin Wagner
“At halftime we had to refocus, calm down and get back to how we always play.”
“It’s great to have the senior leadership. We’ve all been through so much together since freshman (year). We work really well off each other, and each person responds to and has a connection with someone else on the team.”
“It’s been a great four years, and (Coach Denney Wright) definitely deserves Big Ten Coach of the Year. She has learned to work with the people that she has on the team and it’s been a great experience.”