IU (12-4-5) begins this quest by hosting Xavier (14-5-2) in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
IU is the No. 5 overall seed in the tournament and earned a first round bye, while Xavier beat Monmouth 2-1 in overtime Thursday night to reach the second round.
Xavier finished second in the Big East in both the regular season and conference tournament, thanks in large part to its defense.
Xavier has set a school record with 11 shutouts this season and allowed just three goals in conference play. In comparison, IU has seven shutouts this season and allowed 10 goals in conference play.
Xavier’s defense is led by its senior goalkeeper, Eric Osswald. Osswald was named Big East goalkeeper of the year after posting a school record goals allowed average of 0.65. He has 45 saves and a save percentage of .882.
Xavier has been getting it done offensively, as well, this season thanks to the distribution of senior Will Walker. Walker has nine assists this season, eighth best in the country. IU’s opponents have only recorded 12 assists all season. As a team, Xavier has 34 assists this season.
Xavier’s senior class of Osswald, Walker, defender Matt Hill, midfielder Garrett Halfhill and midfielder Owen Steinwall has been the best class in Xavier history. Since the five arrived on campus in 2011, Xavier’s winning percentage of .677 is better than any other four-year stretch in Xavier history.
Xavier has only lost once in regulation since Aug. 31 and is 13-3-2 in its last 18 matches.
Xavier defeated IU 1-0 in an exhibition game earlier this season.
That night was a long time ago. Then, IU was a young team that was unranked in the NSCAA rankings and picked to finish in the middle of the Big Ten. Now, IU is ranked No. 5 by the NSCAA and was the Big Ten tournament runner-up.
Xavier was also unranked in the preseason and is now No. 14 heading into Sunday.
The lone goal in that exhibition was scored by junior Alex Ridsdale with the assist coming from Walker. Ridsdale is tied for third on the team with four goals this season, not counting his score in the exhibition against IU.
IU managed 13 shots that night, but only two were on goal. That problem has persisted throughout the season with IU getting 38 percent of its shot attempts on frame.
Against a team as defensively sound as Xavier, IU will need to be efficient in getting its chances in front of goal on frame, or its quest for a ninth star may end early.
