IU women’s soccer defeated Valparaiso University 1-0 Thursday night in its first match of the season at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
The Hoosiers took the game to the Beacons at the beginning of the match and earned nine corners in the process, but were unable to open the scoring in the first half. Other than a few threatening shots on net in the opening quarter-hour, IU was unable to figure out a well-organized Valparaiso defense.
“In the first half we wanted them to play the first ball out and then pressure them, but that didn’t work out,” head coach Erwin van Bennekom said. “We changed shape from a 3-4-3 in the first half to a 4-3-3 in the second half to pressure the ball higher and quicker, and after that they just couldn’t get out.”
The aggressive change of formation to begin the second half sparked IU‘s offense. In the 70th minute of the match, freshman defender Camille Hamm sent a ball into the box that bounced over Valparaiso goalkeeper Nikki Coryell and found her freshman counterpart Jordyn Levy, who controlled the ball a few yards in front of goal and put it away.
“The minute that Camille passed that ball over I knew I would be on it,” Levy said. “It was messy, so finishing it was a great feeling.”
The final 20 minutes of action saw a much more open game as the Beacons tried to push for an equalizer. The Hoosiers took advantage of Valparaiso’s high lines and were gifted a few dangerous counter-attacking opportunities with balls sent in behind the defense, but were unable to find the back of the net again. In the end, IU’s defense was able to hold Valparaiso to just one shot for the entire second half, holding onto the lead comfortably.
“Our main objective going into the game was to win it and we did that,” van Bennekom said. “I thought we won with just enough ease, but we didn’t make it easy on ourselves. We didn’t capitalize on 18 corners, which is where we were dangerous last year.”
Van Bennekom made six substitutions in the first half alone, and among them was Levy, who scored the game-winner. He said his team’s bench depth will be the most influential factor in its success this year, and stressed the team will rotate much more this year than in years past.
Goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg started in net for the Hoosiers, answering the big question of who would replace staple Bethany Kopel after she was ruled out for the year following an injury she aggravated in IU’s final match last season against Penn State.
The freshman Gerstenberg looked strong in the opener, stopping all three shots she faced with ease. Van Bennekom said he liked what he saw from the Big Ten Player to Watch honoree.
“There’s a zero on the away column and that’s all we wanted,” van Bennekom said. “She’s a good player who will only continue to get better.”
IU will hit the road for a clash against in-state opponent University of Notre Dame at 4 p.m. Sunday at Alumni Stadium in South Bend, Indiana. Notre Dame is coming off a victory over Bowling Green State University in its home opener Thursday night.
Fans were in attendance for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted sporting events, and the players could feel the difference from last spring when only parents and relatives could attend IU home games.
“Tonight’s atmosphere was insane,” Levy said. “The fans got our adrenaline pumping and pushed us the entire game.”
The Hoosiers will look to build off this win and take the energy of the crowd with them away from home.
“It’s a lot better to start off with a win, and going forward we just need to keep going game-by-game,” Levy said. “We’re feeling very good.”
