Women's soccer ready for ‘cracking’ game against No. 13 Florida

Going in head first, the IU women’s soccer team is looking to not only be physically prepared for the start of their season, but also ready mentally.\nThe team will be in Gainesville, Fla., Friday night to start their season with a match against the No. 13 Florida Gators. The Gators will provide a stiff test for the Hoosier squad, one that IU coach Mick Lyon knows will be representative of games to come for his team.\n“We have been letting (the players) know that this is going to be the first game for us,” Lyon said. “It’s going to be a cracking game with high-level competition, and this will be an early example of what it is like to play a top Big Ten game.”\nLyon then said that for his team to be completely prepared for Florida, they have to also worry about the mental side of their game.\n“When you play good teams, you have to remember to be as mistake-free as possible,” Lyon said. “That means execute things to 100 percent, and to do that you have to be completely focused.”\nSenior midfielder Katy Stewart said focusing on the game a few days beforehand really helps her focus while competing.\n“As an individual, you need to think of your role with the team and on the field,” Stewart said. “Just thinking about when you have been successful in the past and trying to make that happen again. Even sometimes just closing your eyes and seeing yourself on the field, so when you actually get there it’s more natural, and you feel more comfortable because you have already thought about it.”\nAfter their match with Florida, the Hoosiers will play Jacksonville University at noon on Sunday in Jacksonville, Fla.\nThough Jacksonville does not rank as high as Florida, the match will still prove difficult, since the Hoosiers have little recovery time between games.\n“(Playing two games in the same weekend) is hard when you have a big game on Friday, because it takes a lot out of you for Sunday,” senior midfielder Beverly Markwort said. “But we have been talking about exercises you can do after the game – stretching and keeping loose will help.”\nStewart echoed her teammate’s sentiment.\n“The way we look at it is we play one game at a time,” Stewart said. “So, Friday night we are going to go out and give everything we have, and work after the game to get ourselves ready to come out at 100 percent again Sunday, because it’s not like we can give half on Friday and half on Sunday. We have to give everything at every game and look at it one game at a time.”\nAfter Jacksonville, the squad will have a week off before hosting the Hoosier Classic the weekend of Sept. 7.