Playing without leading scorer Jenny Kundert, No. 8 seed UW women’s soccer team (11-9-1, 4-6-0) fell 1-0 to No. 4 Michigan (9-6-6, 4-2-4) in the semifinal round of the Big Ten tournament Friday.

“There was a lot of emotion out there, battling the temperature, battling the conditions,” head coach Dean Duerst said. “We really wanted that one against Michigan.”

With 2:36 remaining in the first half, midfielder Theresa Dwyer received a pass near the end line and lifted the ball over goalkeeper Stefani Szczechowski into the corner of the net to score the game’s only goal.

“It was two even teams going after it and battling, and they got the lucky shot,” Duerst said. “Was it a cross, was it a shot? I don’t know that she was shooting, but it went in.”

After surrendering the goal, the Badgers turned up their offensive intensity in the second half, but the Wolverines protected their lead with a solid defensive effort.

“It always hurts, especially two minutes before the end of the half,” Duerst said. “Then the pressure is on you; you have to score. What happens is defenses just sort of pack in, and they were pretty good about that.”

In the last five minutes, the Badgers put on a final desperate charge, but the Wolverines held on to advance to the championship game.

“I’ve seen a lot of games where you do score in the final 30 seconds,” Duerst said. “We just ran out of time. It looked like, give us five more [minutes] and we can score.”

Playing without Kundert, who led the team in goals (7) for the second consecutive season, the offense failed to record a shot on goal in the loss.

“We miss Jenny [Kundert] up top,” Duerst said. “She’s a force. She puts fear into people. Her and that combination with Marisa [Brown] probably would have opened up some things.”

Kundert injured her left ankle in the Badgers’ first round victory over top seed Penn State. Despite the injury, Kundert was able to finish the game and record Wisconsin’s first goal in the shootout.

“She hurt her ankle last night and played through it, but there was no way she could have played today,” Duerst said. “We missed her. She would have been a dominant player in this game.”

The Badgers struggled offensively throughout the tournament, failing to score a goal in regulation time.

“It was a little frustrating,” forward Katy Lindenmuth said. “I think we had chances that we just really need to finish. We went two games in the tournament scoreless. We need to put away some chances. We’re creating them; we’re just not finishing.”

While the Wisconsin offense faltered, the defense turned in two strong performances, allowing just one goal in the tournament.

“Our defense played really well,” Lindenmuth said. “We defended all over the field and tackled hard.”

Despite the loss to Michigan, the Badgers finished their season strong, winning the last three games of the regular season and earning a shocking upset against Penn State, the No. 7 ranked team in the nation, in the first round of the Big Ten tournament.

“We wanted to be a very good team at the end of the year, and we were,” Duerst said. “I can say that with all honesty. That game against Penn State shows what your group can bring to the table when they put their minds to it.”

Unless the Badgers are selected for the NCAA tournament, the loss to Michigan will end their season. Though they failed to reach the Big Ten tournament final, the Badgers can take pride in their tournament success, which provided a solid close to a strong season.

“I’m proud of our kids,” Duerst said. “They are definitely a good team and they had a good tournament. To get to the final like we did last year, we just needed something up top. Our kids have their heads up.”