Column: Men’s soccer team prepared to take next step in tournament

In the pouring rain at practice Tuesday, the IU men’s soccer team couldn’t help but cheer.

Normally, a team coming off back-to-back losses to end the season wouldn’t be so joyful, but these Hoosiers know the story.

After earning the No. 14 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the slate is now wiped clean, and IU is three wins away from its 18th appearance in the College Cup.

“We need to enjoy the moment that we have because there are about 150 other teams that don’t have that moment,” IU coach Todd Yeagley said. “Today in training in the pouring down rain, the guys were hooting and hollering, and this has been a really good week.”

Many of the skeptics looking at IU’s 9-7-2 record might be surprised they received one of 16 first-round byes.

A deeper look into the schedule shows that IU is more than battle-tested for the rigors of the NCAA Tournament.

Of the Hoosiers’ seven losses, five are to teams seeded in the top 16, and they also have five wins against NCAA Tournament teams.

“We had some signature wins, and our losses were all against very good teams,” Yeagley said.

The Big Ten Coach of the Year has been pleased with his team’s training following its Big Ten Tournament semifinal loss to Penn State.

Keeping his team in the moment and focusing on Sunday’s second-round match with the winner of the game between Tulsa and Bradley is the only thing on Yeagley’s mind.

Even if the coach won’t look past IU’s first tournament game, it doesn’t mean that the Hoosier faithful don’t have their eyes focused on a potential third-round game with No. 3 seed Akron.

The Zips have been ranked No. 1 in the nation at various times during the season.

Since taking over as coach at Akron in 2006, former Hoosier player Caleb Porter has put the Zips atop the college soccer world. In order for the Hoosiers to regain that status, they must advance deep into this year’s tournament.

Capturing the Big Ten regular season title was a step in the right direction for Yeagley. The next step comes in the following weeks as IU not only tries to return to the College Cup in Santa Barbara, Calif., but also has an opportunity to put an eighth banner on the east side of Yeagley Field.

It will not be an easy task, but nobody said it would be.

However, this Hoosier team has a couple things going for it that championship teams have.

Goals are at a premium come tournament time, and IU has arguably the nation’s best striker in junior forward Will Bruin.

The Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year scored 16 goals in 18 games this season and has been at his best in big games.

At the other end of the pitch, IU is led by a veteran backline, and even though sophomore goalkeeper Luis Soffner has been shaky at times this season, he was vital in the Hoosiers’ run to the Sweet 16 last year.

Another aspect of a championship team is resiliency, and this IU team has routinely bounced back from losses all season long.

Five times during the regular season, IU followed a loss with a victory and scored a combined 15 goals in those wins.

“This whole entire season, we have been able to recover from losses, so we are not that worried about it,” freshman midfielder Jacob Bushue said.

The words “underdog” and “IU soccer” don’t usually fall into the same sentence, but that role sits perfectly with Yeagley.

“We are certainly not a favorite going into this tournament, but I like the position we are in,” Yeagley said. “This group, there is no pressure, and folks out there aren’t expecting the Hoosiers to make a run to the College Cup.”

There might not be many people saying it, but this IU team has the formula for a championship run.

If Yeagley and his team have their way, more practices in the cold and rain are in store for a trip to sunny Santa Barbara.


E-mail: kdbowen@indiana.edu