COLUMBUS, Ohio – Sophomore goalkeeper Trey Muse used his left hand to signal the numbers five, two and zero as he ran off the field to join his team in celebration.
The numbers represented the IU men's soccer 7-0 conference record after it beat Ohio State to clinch the Big Ten regular season championship outright.
It marks the first time since 2010 that IU claimed the top honors. That year was also the first season for Coach Todd Yeagley.
"We felt like every game this year they were really focused on having a moment like this," Yeagley said. "I’m certainly happy for the seniors in particular because how good they’ve been during the course of their time here. This Big Ten run is quite special to this streak we have. To get awarded with a trophy was great.”
IU shut out Ohio State 1-0 thanks to a first-half goal from senior defender Andrew Gutman.
After Ohio State controlled most of the possession in the early parts of the game, sophomore midfielder Spencer Glass put his signature left foot on the ball.
Glass crossed the ball into the box from the left flank, and it soared toward the goal. Gutman then came running in from the right side of the box. Gutman put his head on the ball to find the back of the net and give IU the 1-0 advantage.
Ohio State had a chance in the 65th minute to score the equalizer, but Muse made a diving effort to save the goal. IU had a handful of opportunities to widen the margin off set pieces, but Ohio State would either clear or block the chances.
As the clock dwindled down, Gutman’s goal proved to be the difference maker.
“We didn’t adjust quick enough,” Yeagley said. “Then right around the goal, I thought we kind of took over and had really lion share of the game after. We didn’t want to extend ourselves, but I definitely thought there were moments we could’ve been better in the final third to get two.”
The win for IU means its match Sunday against No. 12 Michigan State has no effect on IU's Big Ten Tournament seeding.
In the seven conference matches, the Hoosiers have outscored their opponents 12-3. They’ve also picked up four clean sheets out of the last five conference matches.
Last season IU didn’t suffer a single loss until the National Championship match against Stanford and still came away without any hardware to show for it.
Fast forward to tonight, and the Hoosiers are already in possession of one of the three trophies they hope to acquire with still one regular season match remaining.
As the clock counted down to zero Wednesday night, and the sportsmanship handshakes with Ohio State concluded, senior midfielder Frankie Moore walked off the field with tears running down his face as his team came away with a trophy in his fifth and final season with the Hoosiers.
“You see it with Frankie, he’s been so good for us,” Yeagley said. “He’s an emotional kid, to see him very moved like many of them. These are what makes these moments even that more special.”
