Men's soccer looks to turn corner at Creighton

Senior midfielder Andy Adlard leads the men’s soccer team with three goals in games played outside Bloomington this season.

Having plenty of road game experience, Adlard knows just how important Saturday’s match at No. 11 Creighton will be.

“It’s a major turning point in the season,” the captain said. “You’ve got to start playing your best now, getting the wins in at the end of the season. There’s a little pressure.”
Creighton (8-1) most recently defeated No. 5 Tulsa. IU is 5-4-1 coming off a Wednesday home loss to Notre Dame.

“Creighton’s a great team, and the atmosphere is going to be tremendous,” Adlard said. “So we have to overcome that obstacle and push through it.” Freshman midfielder Jacob Bushue, unlike Adlard, has yet to play a top-15 school on the road.

He said he welcomes his first taste of hostile, tournament-like atmosphere in Omaha.
“I’m really excited for it,” Bushue said. “It’s their homecoming. There’s going to be tons of fans there. It’s going to be a great atmosphere. It’s a good test for us.”

As far as the quality of soccer goes, Bushue said the team is right where it needs to be but just lacks the ability to capitalize on key opportunities.

“I think we’ve been playing some pretty good soccer, but sometimes it just takes a couple more lucky bounces, maybe a little better finishing and less mistakes in the back,” he said. “I feel like we’re on the right track. We just need to do the smaller things a little bit better.”

Ten games into IU’s 17-game regular season schedule, the Hoosiers are past the
midway point, and Adlard said the focus in the locker room is for IU to not beat itself.

“We can limit our mistakes that cost us goals,” Adlard said. “In previous games we have done very silly things that have cost us. If we eliminate those and maybe take our chances on some set pieces and corners, put a few of those away, that’s obviously one way to get a good win in.”

Following Wednesday’s loss, IU dropped to one game above .500. Adlard said that adds a bit of urgency in the Indiana locker, but no one is hitting the panic button quite yet.

“You’re going to feel it,” he said. “None of the people on the team want to lose. Everyone cares, and it means a lot to us every game, but the only thing you can do is look forward. I think this team has the personnel to push through it and get the win.”