“(Northwestern is) a team that had a really rough year last year and lost their coaching staff,” Saxton said. “Here in the Big Ten, they’ve won two of their last three, so they’re surging. I know we’re probably still reeling a little bit from the weekend, but we’ll get that out of us in the days ahead.”

He said the emotions of Senior Day can mess with the team’s psyche, but this game will come down to which team is more eager.

“You have to be really careful; there’s a fine line there,” Saxton said. “I’ve had Senior Days that were so emotional that we came out and started weird for 15 minutes. It really will be a game of desire and who wants it, and I really hope and expect our team to rally behind our seniors and get that ninth win and finish things on the right note.”

Defender Desiree Aber, midfielder Kelly Lindsay, forward Olivia Stander, midfielder Kori Reinhart, midfielder Chelsea Peterson, defender Kelsey Kassab and midfielder Jordan Mueller will end their careers on Saturday, and Saxton said they are a great group of people.

“We pride ourselves on being a family that has our values in the right place,” he said. “Soccer is very important, and we try to be professional, but we also talk about the bigger picture in life, and this group embodies that.”

Mueller said it’s surreal that her incredible four years are almost over.

“I wouldn’t change anything, and it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Mueller said. “Being a student and athlete at a Big Ten university prepares you for life in so many different ways that I wouldn’t have imagined coming here at 18 years old. I’ve just become a stronger person because of it based on everything we’ve gone through.”

Since their first year in 2009, the seniors have 42 wins, and one of the greatest memories that many of them said they had was their 2-1 overtime defeat of Indiana last season.

Lindsay was one of the seniors who said the Indiana game was her favorite memory because of what it meant to the team.

“It was an emotional day for the entire team,” Lindsay said. “It was a pretty good game.”

If there was one message that she had for the younger players, it was to remember the time with teammates because it goes by quickly.

“Cherish every moment that you have, because it seems like just yesterday that I stepped on this field to run the beat test for the first time, and it’s all over on Saturday,” she said.

The game kicks off at 1 p.m. on Saturday at DeMartin Stadium at Old College Field.