After 1st loss, team looking to rebound against No. 11 Louisville

Last year, both their seasons ended at the hands of the eventual national champions.
Now, they’re both ranked within the top 15 and are both coming off devastating losses.

For one, it’s the IU men’s soccer team’s first loss of the season, and for the other, it was a double-overtime loss to the No. 1 team in the country, Connecticut.

Today’s match at Jerry Yeagley Field, featuring No. 10 Indiana and No. 11 Louisville, has the makings of a classic.

IU’s focus for the beginning of this week was not preparing for Louisville but coping with and putting behind its first loss of the season, a 2-0 defeat to Big Ten foe Wisconsin on Sunday in Madison, Wis.

This loss put an end to a couple of streaks, including junior Luis Soffner’s goalless streak of almost 395 minutes.

Soffner said he’ll use the goals he gave up as something to learn from and help motivate himself for the game against Louisville.

“The defense and the rest of the team definitely thrived off the streak, and it felt good knowing I was helping the team,” Soffner said. “But Sunday was something to learn from, and hopefully I can get another streak going.”

Starting another scoreless streak against Louisville won’t be an easy task.
The Cardinals have scored 15 goals this season in nine games, just short of IU’s potent offense, which has scored 17 times in nine games.

The key is simply taking away their chances, senior defender Tommy
Meyer said.

It’s something Meyer and his defenders failed to do after Wisconsin’s two goals off corner kicks Sunday.

“Of course, we don’t want to give up any goals,” Meyer said. “But we’ve really got to prevent those dangerous situations that Wisconsin had in the box against us on Sunday where we gave away two goals.”

If Meyer and Soffner can keep up their ends of the deal, it’ll come down to whether senior midfielder Alec Purdie, IU’s most dangerous offensive threat this season, or his other teammates, can find the back of the net.

“We just need to keep doing what we’re doing,” Purdie said. “On days like Sunday when you miss a ton of kicks, you just know it’s not your day. But we almost always outshoot our opponents, so we create a lot of chances, and I’m always pretty positive that we’re going to get one at some point.”

Purdie said Sunday’s lack of success has, in a way, motivated him and his teammates even more, giving them a feeling that they have something to prove after their first loss of the season.

Combined with playing their highest-ranked opponent of the season, knowing the Hoosier Army will be in full force at home and Louisville is last year’s NCAA tournament runner-up, Purdie and his teammates have all the motivation they need to try and give Louisville its third straight loss.

“If anything, Sunday’s made us even hungrier,” Purdie said. “We’re really looking forward to Wednesday night for our battle against Louisville, who actually lost a rough game this past weekend.

“They’re going to be bitter, too, but there’s no doubt in our mind that we can get a win. There’s nothing stopping us from getting a win Wednesday, and we’re pretty confident right now.”