Hoosiers go undefeated in exhibition

So far, so good for new women's soccer coach Mick Lyon. The Hoosiers tied Valparaiso in their first action of the year last Wednesday and defeated IU-Purdue University Fort Wayne 6-1 Saturday. Although both games were exhibitions, they provided Lyon some insight into the make-up of a team buoyed by a new coaching staff and featuring eight freshman players.\nThe Hoosiers opened their season at home with a 1-1 tie against the Valparaiso Crusaders. Lyon said he was pleased with the effort but saw room for improvement. \n"Our team's overall performance was a B-minus," Lyon said in a statement. "The effort and commitment were at a very high level, but tonight we really played a median kind of game."\nJunior forward Shelly Gruszka scored the lone goal for the Hoosiers, on a free kick that broke a scoreless tie at the beginning of the second half. The Crusaders responded with a goal by Lorna Torrez that secured the tie. \nThe game gave the Hoosiers' freshman core a chance to get their first taste of collegiate competition. Freshman forward Kristen Zmijewski took three shots and said the game provided a barometer for the competition level in college.\n"I was very nervous going into the game tonight because it's the first in college," she said in a statement. "The play at this level is so much faster. But now that I've actually played in a game, I know what to expect."\nIn their match against the IPFW, the Hoosiers came out shooting. Zmijewski opened the scoring for the Hoosiers with a shot off a rebound past by Mastadon goaltender Rachel Poor. \nSenior co-captain Kristen Sprunger scored the second goal of the night for IU and Zmijewski added a second tally later in the match. Midfielders senior Kara Bryan and sophomore Kim Grodek also scored, and freshman Kristin Limburg added a goal off of the bench. \n"(It) was a good step forward in preseason preparation for us," Lyon said. "We were able to solve questions we had in the back, midfield and up front. We put together a lot of different combinations to give our coaching staff an idea of how the players work together on the field."\nThe Hoosiers begin their regular season Friday when they play in the Missouri Classic in Columbia, Miss. They take on Kentucky at 5 p.m. and Missouri at 7 p.m. Sunday. \nBryan said the preseason exhibitions prepared the team well for this weekend's start to the regular season. \n"The coaches were pleased and I was proud of our intensity," Bryan said in a statement. "This game was good preparation for next week. We've had a tough preseason and I think it's going to pay off"