Following its first conference and second win of the season against Northwestern last week, USC soccer entered Thursday’s match with a key chance to secure another victory, this time against Nebraska. 

USC (2-9-6, 1-6-4 Big Ten) had played Nebraska (3-4-10, 1-3-7) just once before since joining the conference. The Trojans entered the week only three points behind the Cornhuskers in the Big Ten standings, looking to take control of a match that had no heavy favorite. 

Coming in with just three games left in the season, the Trojans fought hard to redeem their record. Yet, despite 27 total shots in the game — including 10 from the Trojans — the scoreboard remained blank, and USC walked away with another tie. The Trojans extended their unbeaten streak to four games, while the Cornhuskers had their fifth consecutive scoreless tie.  

“I thought [in the] first half they dominated, and [in the] second half we did,” Head Coach Jane Alukonis said in a postgame interview with the Daily Trojan. “We got off to a little bit of a slow start, but were able to … turn it around and play much better.”

Goalkeeper performances dictate play

Going into Thursday’s game, the main obstacle in the way of a Trojan win was Nebraska’s defensive cohesion. 

“They’re just super disciplined. They’re well coached … They work very hard,” Alukonis said. “They’re just all on the same page defensively … and know exactly what they should be doing in their defensive roles.”

In the rare case that the Cornhuskers’ defense was penetrated and the opponent got a shot off, Nebraska senior goalkeeper Avery Gillahan holds the third-highest save percentage in the conference at .829. She’s been impressive the whole year, contributing to the Cornhuskers’ nine shutouts this season. 

Knowing the likely challenge it would be to attain a USC goal, freshman goalkeeper Josie Biehl’s performance was critical. Biehl has been a huge asset to her team this season, saving 74.7% of shots on goal. Since the Trojans opened conference play with a five-goal loss to Michigan State (12-3-2, 7-3), Biehl has limited opponents to just 13 goals over the past 10 games. 

Biehl certainly met the demand of the game, saving all six of Nebraska’s shots on goal while  making key preventative plays. She won multiple high-stakes one-on-ones and protected the net from all seven Cornhusker corner kicks. 

Biehl had a handful of impressive plays, including a one-handed save on a would-be goal off a free kick five minutes into the game. Thursday’s game marked the Trojans’ second shutout in a row and their third this season. 

“[Biehl’s] just been unreal all season, and I think that’s a combination of many things — of course, talent and skill, but also the mental component of the game,” Alukonis said. “Playing goalkeeper is arguably the hardest position, and to do it so well at such a young age has been very, very impressive.”

While it was primarily a defensive match, both offenses created multiple attacking chances for themselves. Nebraska had several promising opportunities, nine of which were called offsides and the remaining stopped. 

USC took 10 shots, only slightly lower than its average of 11.5 per game. The Trojans gained momentum especially at the end of the game, taking five of their 10 shots within the last seven minutes.

“If there were still overtime, I think we could have pulled out a result based on the momentum we had at the end of the game,” Alukonis said. 

Trojan morale remains high despite record

Prior to kickoff Thursday evening, the Trojans entered the field dancing and singing, full of joy. Regardless of their struggles this season, Alukonis said she knows the future of the squad is bright. 

“They know that in the future they will be a very good team,” Alukonis said. “They know that it’s just going to take a little bit of time for the pieces to come together.” 

While USC is fighting to end the season strong, it’s also playing the long game. The Trojans had 11 substitutes on Thursday, giving 22 players total the opportunity to play. 

“We’ve been trying to get experience for players who haven’t gotten a chance yet this year,” Alukonis said. “But [we’re] also trying to get some consistency among some of the other players who we know will be key players for us for the rest of [the] season and moving into the future.” 

After taking a 3-1 loss Sunday against Iowa (9-4-5, 4-3-4), the Trojans will finish the season back at home against rival UCLA (11-4-2, 8-2-1).