As University of Louisville sophomore forward Andrés Escudero Martín stepped up to his free kick opportunity in the 58th minute, No. 14 Indiana men's soccer had already been having a night to forget.
Then, from just outside the penalty arc, Escudero lifted a strike over Indiana’s wall and the outstretched fingertips of junior goalkeeper Michal Mroz to put the Cardinals in front.
The Hoosiers couldn’t sustain any offensive momentum from the start, only having one shot and none on goal. But after Indiana freshman forward Michael Adu-Gyamfi played a poor challenge on sophomore defender Nicholas Parham, Escudero got a free kick.
Indiana responded nine minutes later with a goal of its own, as junior forward Easton Bogard curled a shot into the back of the net. However, in the remaining 23 minutes, neither team could get past stout defensive performances, ending Monday’s match at Lynn Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky, in a 1-1 draw.
It was only the second time the two programs tied each other in their 25-match history. The last was in 2012, when both teams combined for 24 shots in a 2-2 final score.
Monday night was a different story for Indiana.
The Hoosiers weren’t able to get past Louisville’s starting backline of sophomores Ashton Flowers and Silas Damm, junior Noah De Blasis and senior Ryan Quintos. Indiana put forth its first shot in the 45th minute — 19 seconds before halftime — but senior forward Collins Oduro’s attempt missed wide left.
In their own defensive half, Indiana couldn’t create turnovers throughout most of the game. The same starting defensive group from the Hoosiers’ three previous games — senior Alex Barger and juniors Josh Maher, Nick McHenry and Nolan Kinsella — did not give Louisville many great chances at Mroz, but they also did not push the ball up field.
The Cardinals finished Monday’s contest with only two shots on goal — one of which went into the back of the net. Louisville’s other shot on Mroz came in the 50th minute, as junior midfielder Giacomo Zizza forced Mroz to make a diving save to his right side.
The Atlantic Coast Conference’s leading scorer got the opportunity to shoot due to a bad pass from Maher to fifth-year midfielder Wes Carnevale. The ball deflected away from Carnevale’s foot and raised the heart rates of many Hoosiers on the field.
Zizza also produced the first shot for either team in Monday’s match off an Indiana turnover. In the 13th minute, a previous foul on Bogard helped give Louisville an advantage on the counterattack. With two nice passes inside the box, Zizza’s shot was deflected away from the net by the extended right leg of Maher.
Throughout the season, Indiana’s backline has made up for mistakes or turnovers. The Hoosiers still haven’t given up a goal from open play, as the University of Notre Dame scored a penalty during Indiana’s 3-1 season-opening victory.
The Cardinals had a better attack than Indiana’s previous opponents to start the season, as Louisville scored eight goals in its three matches coming into Monday’s contest. However, Indiana still stifled Louisville’s offensive pressure.
The Hoosiers even moved to a three-at-the-back formation in the 62nd minute, as senior forward Oliver Moller-Jensen substituted in for fifth-year defender Breckin Minzey. With just Maher, McHenry and Barger at the back — along with fifth-year midfielder Alex Matthews occasionally playing deeper — Indiana only gave up one shot.
But most of Louisville’s damage to the Hoosiers’ defensive mentality came in the first half.
After Zizza’s 13th-minute shot, Louisville produced three additional shots before the whistle was blown for halftime. Junior midfielder Brayden Sellers’ attempt in the 23rd minute was deflected over the net by Indiana.
Then, the Cardinals gained a flurry of chances in the 31st minute, as Louisville had two attempts at goal off a free kick.
“That was a pretty poor 45 (minutes),” Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley told ACC Network before the start of the second half. “We couldn’t pass the ball very well. Our pressure was poor. Our ideas weren’t great.”
Additionally, the poor challenges from Indiana resulted in the Hoosiers recording two yellow cards in Monday’s contest, its second-most penalties of the season.
After the one-game road trip, Indiana must regain its defensive fortitude as the Hoosiers return to Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington for the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic against California Polytechnic State University and Denver University on Sept. 4 and Sept. 7, respectively.
Follow reporters Noah Boudouris (@noahboudouris and nboudour@iu.edu) and Sean McAvoy (@sean_mc07 and semcavoy@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s soccer season.
