He booted the ball well past the half-line and almost to IU goalkeeper Colin Webb at the other end of the field.
Cortes had to retrieve the ball out of the back of the net four times, three times in the second half, in IU’s 4-0 win Wednesday night against IUPUI at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
“We didn’t want our guys to be frustrated if the goal didn’t happen because we knew we’d have more of the ball,” IU Coach Todd Yeagley said. “We didn’t want it to feel like we had to be up 2-0 at half or it wouldn’t be a successful half.”
The Hoosiers needed a few minutes to break down the Jaguars’ defense, but once they did they had no problem creating scoring chances. In total, IU had 24 shots with 11 on frame.
The scoring breakthrough came in the 16th minute with a goal from senior midfielder Matt Foldesy, the first goal in IU’s 4-0 win.
IU knew there would be space somewhere in the IUPUI defense, but it had to figure out where it would be, Yeagley said. Once the Hoosiers found they could attack down the sidelines, they adjusted.
“That’s the strength of this team, that we can move different players of our team, and the roles and the responsibilities they can adapt to quickly,” Yeagley said. “That’s a great sign.”
The first goal started when junior midfielder Phil Fives raced down junior midfielder Tanner Thompson’s pass in the corner, past a Jaguar defender and turned inside toward the box. He passed the ball to Foldesy, who was able to turn around his defender and score.
This is how IU continued to attack throughout the rest of the match. Eventually, IUPUI became stretched apart while trying to handle the wide attacks from IU, so more space began to open up in the middle of the field.
In the first half, it was Fives creating problems for IUPUI. In the second half, it was freshman midfielder Rees Wedderburn who the Jaguars had trouble containing.
IU adjusted its attack again at halftime, moving Hollinger-Janzen to forward and allowing players to make runs around him.
“Especially with Femi up top, it’s easy to play off him because he holds the ball up so well,” Wedderburn said. “Then you’ve got loads of guys running off. Just a great game to play in as a No. 10.”
Wedderburn drew the penalty that resulted in the second goal of the match, and recorded three shots on target himself.
In many cases, the freshman was making creative decisions that resulted in chances for the Hoosiers. These decisions, not just by Wedderburn, are why IU found success, Yeagley said.
Once the adjustments are made and players find themselves in open space, they still need to make enough good decisions to eventually put the ball in the back of the net.
“They made good decisions tonight, they really did,” Yeagley said. “Ultimately it comes down to decision making with what the game is telling you. Your movement and spacing creates it and then you have to make a good decision.”
