IU falls to Michigan State on the road

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The Hoosiers will need help to reach their goal of winning the Big Ten regular season championship.

Facing IU Sunday afternoon, Michigan State’s Jay Chapman scored his first career goal, a strike from 22 yards away in the 43rd minute.

He went on to score twice more, giving him a hat trick and the Spartans a 3-1 win on their senior day at DeMartin Stadium.

The freshman midfielder’s first goal traveled beyond the outstretched arm of senior goalkeeper Luis Soffner, who was soaring to his left. Midfielder Sean Conerty provided the pass.

Consequently, the Hoosiers faced their first halftime deficit of conference play.

“It’s tough when a team scores like that in the first half,” senior defender Caleb Konstanski said. “We’re playing well the first half, probably should’ve had a one- or two-goal lead. Ball bounces to him on an unlucky clearance, and he capitalized on his opportunistic chance.

“We were disappointed, but we were still confident at halftime. We’re a second-half team. We knew we could come back and win.”

Junior midfielder Jacob Bushue left the game in the 36th minute due to a leg injury and did not return. Sophomore midfielder Dylan Lax replaced him.

After the game, IU Coach Todd Yeagley said Bushue’s status is unclear.

Chapman doubled the Spartans’ lead in the 52nd minute as he beat Soffner in a one-on-one matchup.

He received a pass from junior Adam Montague, dribbled down the left side of the pitch and cut in at the 18-yard box.

He took a few more dribbles and sent the ball over Soffner’s left shoulder.

It was only the second time this season IU trailed by two goals.

The Hoosiers rallied for a 3-2 win Sept. 9 against Oregon State. Yeagley said memories of the Hoosiers’ rally inspired some fight in his team Sunday.

“We were outfought. We weren’t outplayed,” he said. “They were opportunistic and made their chances. We lost the fight today. Lesson learned.”

Chapman, in the 76th minute, completed the hat trick as he buried a rebound from Soffner’s save.

“Indiana’s one of the top Big Ten programs in the country if not in the nation,” Chapman said. “Playing against them, I was really looking forward to it. Getting my first three goals is huge for me.”

Spartan goalkeeper Zach Bennett saved junior midfielder Nikita Kotlov’s shot from 12 yards in the 17th minute, creating the Hoosiers’ seventh corner kick attempt of the period.

“We had a lot of pressure on them in the first 20 minutes,” Petts said. “We played really well. We had a lot of the play, and their first goal came kind of against the run of play, which disheartened us a little bit. We’ve got to be stronger and be able to come back.

“Once we had to start chasing the game, it completely changed the complexity of the game. In the end, we weren’t good enough.”

Zavaleta scored his 15th goal of the season in the 78th minute to prevent Bennett’s fourth shutout.

The Hoosiers’ loss dropped them to 4-1-1 on the road this season.

Konstanski said the Hoosiers have to bounce back.

“We’ve just got to fine-tune some things,” he said. “Giving up three goals, that’s unlike us. We’re definitely going to go back to the drawing board on some things, but we’ll be alright.”