Buckeyes halt Hoosiers

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- They sprinted in their muddy long-sleeved jerseys and shorts, raising their arms to question referees and to excite their teammates.\nAs time drained from minutes to mere seconds, the members of the men's soccer team hurried their shots and put their hands to their foreheads as they watched shot after shot fall wide of goal.\nAnd when time expired, Ohio State fans raced onto the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium soccer field to celebrate the fifth-seeded Buckeyes' 1-0 upset of the top-seeded Hoosiers. No. 19 Ohio State (11-4-4) hung on to an early lead while playing 60 minutes with a man down, to advance to the championship game of the Big Ten tournament.\nThe No. 9 Hoosiers (13-6), on the other hand, lost their first Big Ten game in 39 games -- a period of about five years. In the process, IU didn't advance to the title game for the first time in seven years and lost to the Buckeyes for the first time in 45 years.\n"I just feel terrible," senior forward Matt Fundenberger said after the game. "We were the better team and we couldn't put the ball in the goal. We outplayed them. We were a man up. We got the ball wide. We got the ball in the box. We created chances."\nBut they couldn't score a goal. \nThe Hoosiers outshot the Buckeyes 22-5 in the game, and Ohio State midfielder Brian Feldhaus scored five minutes into the game off a pass from Big Ten Freshman of the year Justin Cook. About 30 minutes into the game, Ohio State defender Todd Grossnickle was called for an intentional handball and was ejected from the game, but goalkeeper Kerry Thompson saved Fundenberger's penalty kick.\n"(Friday) was one those games we might have played until midnight and not scored," coach Jerry Yeagley said. "When they saved the penalty kick, and the balls off the post...We missed the point-blankers. It was very disappointing."\nIU has lost its last three games and might have to play its first NCAA game on the road based on a potential low seeding. The NCAA bracket will be announced today at 3:30 p.m.\n"We just knew we had to play with a sense of urgency, and we played every tackle like it was our last one," senior midfielder Justin Tauber said. "We came out ready to play, there's no doubt about that. The ball didn't bounce our way."\nPlaying in his last Big Ten game, Fundenberger let his emotions show on the field. After watching his teammates' and his own missed shots, he grimaced and put his hands on his head. As the minutes drained away late in the second half, he took a hopeless shot 30 yards away from the goal.\n"We just couldn't hit anything on target," he said. "We had tons of opportunities in the box, and we just couldn't put them away. I would say there were three or four sure goals that we should have had, and they didn't go in."\nFrom the onset of the second half, the Hoosiers had nearly every possession of the ball and charged into Ohio State's box with the ball or made wide passes in hope of tying the game. Junior midfielder Ryan Mack, who was selected Big Ten Player of the Year last week, led IU with eight shots.\nEarly in the second half, Tauber chipped a ball over the defense to Mack, who hammered the ball toward the goal, only to hit the crossbar. Ten minutes later, Mack hit the crossbar again on a shot off a free kick. Sophomore marking back John Swann followed the shot with a header that also hit the crossbar but bounced over the net.\nWith 15 minutes left, all the players and coaches stood from the bench to watch more futile efforts. Junior sweeper Josh Rife handled the ball directly in front of the goal, but then shot high over the crossbar. In the closing minutes, sophomore midfielder Pat Noonan's header fell wide of goal.\n"As coach, I've got to take responsibility," Yeagley said. "Undoubtedly, we didn't prepare these guys well enough to take advantage of those chances. We could create them, but we didn't show the composure"