After a week off and plenty of time to dwell after a frustrating loss to Maryland, Indiana men’s soccer hit the road for the first of two away matches against tough opponents, the first being the fourth-ranked Buckeyes from Ohio State, who came in winners of seven straight and outscored Penn State and Rutgers 8-0 in its first two Big Ten matches. Despite trailing twice, the Hoosiers responded with goals from Sam Sarver and Tommy Mihalic and earned a well-earned 2-2 draw in the rain, moving to 2-3-4 and 1-1-1 in conference play.
Here are my three takeaways:
Indiana got a result in a match where they were the second-best team
Indiana has been the better team in many matches this year but hasn’t been able to display its dominance on the scoreboard. On Friday, Ohio State dominated possession and shot totals but had to share the points with the Hoosiers. Shots were 21-9 Buckeyes and the hosts had eight of the 10 total shots on goal, meaning both of Indiana’s shots on goal ended up in the goal. With the crummy conditions throughout the match, getting a point to snap Ohio State’s winning streak — the longest in the nation entering the night — can go a long way as Indiana looks to change the narrative of the 2024 season.
Alex Barger got a chance to prove himself again — and came up clutch
After starting the first five matches of the year, sophomore Alex Barger probably thought his spot at left-back was in pretty good shape. But, after the first half against Dayton, Barger was sent to the bench in favor of Breckin Minzey, who has slotted in at right-back ever since (Louisville transfer Quinton Elliot switched from the right to the left, a position he is comfortable in considering he played at LB with the Cardinals).
Barger only played a whopping three minutes in the prior three matches, but was brought on for the final 40 minutes of the second half, and made a huge goal-line clearance with two minutes left and the game tied at two, stretching his left leg out while stationed on the post, clearing the ball away and Ohio State’s chance of stealing the victory at the very end. While Barger’s playing time is still unknown considering Minzey has more experience with the Hoosiers and is more athletic, his performance will be noted by Todd Yeagley and the coaching staff.
Indiana got the lucky bounce it had been looking for all year long
Yeagley has been saying all year his team hasn’t gotten the right bounce of the ball, a reason why the team has started slow. A lot of that “luck” has come on set pieces, where shots have been deflected either away from the goal or away from teammates. On Friday, with time winding down and the rain coming down in buckets, Indiana got some luck from a corner kick leading to Mihalic’s fifth tally of the season. The Buckeyes won the initial header and the ball exited the box, but Collins Oduro recollected and found Sarver at the top of the box. His left-footed shot was blocked but pinballed its way to Mihalic, who buried the rebound. The energetic celebration from the visitors could almost be viewed as a sigh of relief that they finally got some luck.
It seemed that Ohio State’s second goal would be enough to hand Indiana its second consecutive loss and break the 11-year streak of avoiding two straight defeats. While the 1-1 draws to Butler and Evansville may have felt like losses considering that Indiana led in both those matches, this will certainly feel more like a win. Knowing the history of the team going on big runs in October, this feels more significant than just a point in the standings. If Indiana does go on another big streak, the team will look back at this match as the turning point. The Hoosiers will travel to Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday to take on the Badgers, with the chance to make it three straight road conference matches avoiding a loss. Kick-off is at 8 p.m. ET.
