Coming into the season, IU Coach Todd Yeagley talked about how his team was disappointed that despite making it to the National Championship game last season, it failed to earn any trophies during the journey.
Now 15 games into the 2018 season, the No. 2-ranked Hoosiers are one win away from securing the Big Ten regular season title outright.
IU is 6-0 in the Big Ten and will travel Wednesday night to Ohio State with hopes to clinch the top seed in the conference tournament.
IU can earn the title outright with a win against either the Buckeyes or No. 18 Michigan State, which IU will play Sunday.
The Hoosiers can also win at least a share of the title if the Spartans lose or tie against the Michigan Wolverines on Tuesday.
Here are three things to know about Ohio State before IU looks to stay undefeated in conference play.
1- A familiar face will go up against the Hoosiers
It will be a familiar face on the opposing sideline when IU takes the pitch against Ohio State.
After spending nine seasons as a part of Todd Yeagley’s staff, Brian Maisonneuve accepted the position as Ohio State head coach in April.
As an assistant and associate head coach, Maisonneuve helped lead IU to eight NCAA Tournament appearances, two College cups and four NCAA Sweet 16 appearances. He’s coached nine All-Americans and 22 players who’ve gone on to play professional soccer, including 14 in MLS.
Maisonneuve was an All-American for the Hoosiers when he played from 1991-1994 alongside Yeagley. He was also the MAC Hermann Trophy winner in 1994. He finished his career at IU with 44 goals and 22 assists.
2 - Ohio State's goal differential issues
In 2018, the Buckeyes have scored only seven goals and allowed 30 goals to their opponents.
To put that into perspective, IU senior defender Andrew Gutman has scored eight goals himself this season.
Only five Ohio State players have found the back of the net, and sophomore forward Devyn Etling leads the team with three goals. Ohio State has been shutout in nine matches this season, including its last two games against No. 3 Kentucky and Maryland.
The Hoosiers have scored 32 goals this season and have allowed nine. The matchup could prove to be a tough one offensively for the Buckeyes.
3 - The Buckeyes have struggled to win this season
Ohio State’s last win came Aug. 26 against Hofstra.
The Buckeyes have lost seven straight matches including matches with then-No. 8 Michigan State and then-No. 19 Michigan. In conference play, Ohio State has been outscored 16-5, but has come close to picking up wins in overtime against Rutgers and Northwestern.
Ohio State has allowed at least one goal in every Big Ten match except for one against Northwestern, when the game ended in a scoreless draw after double overtime.
With the way Ohio State has been playing this season, IU is in prime position to score multiple goals in this matchup.
