IU tries to stay undefeated in Big Ten play

After a 2-0 win against in-state rival Butler, the Hoosiers were back on the pitch Wednesday afternoon to ready themselves for their conference matchup against Michigan at home Friday.

The two-goal shutout might have looked good on paper, but the Hoosiers were less than thrilled with their performance in the Butler game.

“Last night was probably, honestly, our worst game of the season thus far,” junior midfielder Jacob Bushue said. “We came out with the win and kept the shutout, but obviously we let them have a few chances. It easily could’ve and should’ve been a 3-0 or 4-0 win for us, but for as bad as we played, we still got the result.”

Bushue said although the team came away with a win, they couldn’t play against Michigan like they did against Butler.

Following the Butler game, the starter posted this to his Twitter in response to the
performance.

“Good teams figure out ways to win when they have off days... now for friday vs. Michigan to stay undefeated in the big ten.”

Bushue said he was proud of his team for coming away with the win, considering the circumstances of their performance.

“You aren’t going to play your best every day,” Bushue said. “We need to figure out how to get those results when we aren’t in sync like usual. We did that against Butler.”

IU Coach Todd Yeagley said he agreed with Bushue’s statement.

“I think that holds true because every team is going to have games where they won’t play their best day-in and day-out,” Yeagley said. “When our guys are having off-games, the one thing you don’t want to see happen is to have other players who let it effect their own games. Against Butler we just had too many guys that were having bad nights in the same area.”

Yeagley said that factor affected the team’s performance.

He also said the reason for the off night could have been the extended break the team received during its first weekend off since the beginning of the season.

“The break is nice for teams that are needing to start fresh,” Yeagley said. “We, however, were in a nice groove with mid-week games and conference games on the weekends. We were at our peak, and that break, I believe, halted our growth a bit.”

Nevertheless, Bushue said they have put the Butler game behind them in order to prepare for a win Friday.

Indiana is currently ranked No. 5 out of 204 teams in the NCAA Men’s Soccer RPI poll. The Wolverines are No. 42.

“Any win is big, but the Michigan game will be a big one for us because Michigan is the second-highest rated RPI team left on our schedule,” Bushue said. “A win against them would be huge for our postseason. We need to keep the wins rolling to stay high on the RPI chart because we’re looking for a top 8 or even top 4 seed in the national
tournament.”

With both the Hoosiers and  Wildcats undefeated in conference play, the Nov. 1 Northwestern matchup is beginning to look like the possible deciding factor of who will grab the Big Ten season title.

Bushue said although it’s weeks away, that game is on the team’s radar.

“We are definitely looking toward them because of the loss last year,” Bushue said. “But then again, we know it won’t matter unless we beat Michigan and Michigan State, because (Northwestern) will most likely bring an undefeated record to us. I hope, however, that game is for the title.”

Leaving the future where it belongs, the team spent the week working to have success in the present.

“I think last game I turned over some uncharacteristic balls, so I’ve been improving on that a bit,” Bushue said. “I think, defensively, we need to keep doing what we’re doing while the guys work on their individual factors. We need to keep the shutout alive through the season because it is one of our main goals that will ensure success.”