IU was still tied with No. 22 Louisville, 1-1, at halftime, but Coach Todd Yeagley said it was one of the most average halves his team has played all season. At halftime, he told the Hoosiers he wanted better play, and that’s what they gave him.
Junior midfielder Tanner Thompson scored in the 48th minute, and the Hoosiers defended their way to a 2-1 win against the Cardinals on Tuesday night at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
“We just had to move forward and not put our heads down,” Thompson said. “We came in at halftime, regrouped and came out for the second half fired up. We got an early goal which was huge and put them back on their heels.”
IU scored the match’s opening goal early in the first half. Thompson sent a corner kick across the goal where the ball was met by sophomore defender Grant Lillard, who headed back across goal to junior defender Billy McConnell. He then headed the ball home. The goal was the first of McConnell’s career.
But IU surrendered right before the halftime break. Louisville midfielder Romilio Hernandez took a shot from 30 yards out. Junior goalkeeper Colin Webb appeared to have his goal covered, but then the ball took a deflection to the opposite side of the net.
The Hoosiers became too casual after their first goal, Yeagley said.
“I probably didn’t have to even say it, but we said it and they responded,” Yeagley said of his halftime speech. “It was not the intensity of which we play.”
The response was what Yeagley wanted. Thompson found himself with space in the box and senior forward Femi Hollinger-Janzen with the ball in front of him. Hollinger-Janzen had his back to goal with a defender on him, so he laid it off to Thompson.
He said he thought about shooting with his first touch, but Hollinger-Janzen’s man was charging at him. So he took a few dribbles to his left, saw a lane toward goal, took another dribble to his right and sent the ball into the side of the net.
The goal was Thompson’s second of the year and his first from the run of play.
“It really set the tone for the second half,” McConnell said. “Tanner did a great job finishing it, and the pressure was there. We were fired up.”
As Louisville continued to press toward goal, IU continued to clear the ball from danger. Webb was only forced to make one save in the second half.
But as Louisville kept pressing toward goal, the intensity from both teams increased. In the 84th minute, the intensity turned to aggression. Louisville midfielder Ben Strong tried a tackle from behind against freshman midfielder Frankie Moore and got Moore’s leg instead of the ball. Strong was given a red card.
“It was a very gutty last 25 minutes,” Yeagley said. “It’s good to feel those tight games where you come out ahead.”
While the Hoosiers won Tuesday night, they may have lost a key player in their rotation. With just under 10 minutes to play, senior forward Ben Maurey went down grabbing his left knee.
He stayed down as the trainers came onto the field and was helped off without putting any pressure on his left leg.
After the game, he was on crutches. Teammates and coaches were giving Maurey hugs and words of encouragement. There is still no official word on the severity of his injury, and he will receive X-rays Wednesday.
“He was pretty shaken up after the game,” Yeagley said. “Usually I can see from a player’s eyes and body, and he seemed worried.”
