Indiana Soccer Beats Ohio State 2-1 With 82nd-Minute Henderlong Goal

Indiana improved to 3-0-1 in the month of October, taking down Ohio State Sunday afternoon, 2-1. Captain Joey Maher scored the Hoosiers' first goal, but blamed himself postmatch for allowing Ohio State's equalizer. Karsen Henderlong picked him up.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana soccer is takin’ care of business in the month of October.

The Hoosiers have strung together three straight wins, two of which in the Big Ten, to slingshot toward the top of the table. They’re two points behind leaders Penn State and Northwestern. On Sunday afternoon, Indiana beat Ohio State 2-1, with goals by Joey Maher and Karsen Henderlong.

Before the matchup, Indiana’s backline compiled six shutouts in seven home matches. Though Ohio State’s Deylen Vellios equalized in the 65th minute, and the Buckeyes maintained the offensive momentum to add the go-ahead, Indiana’s backline held. Meanwhile, the attack found the dagger.

In the 82nd minute, Samuel Sarver’s cross to the crowded 18-yard box landed right to Henderlong. The forward took two touches and tucked his first shot of the afternoon to the bottom right corner. It marked Henderlong’s third goal this month in four matches. From late August to the first week in October, Indiana hadn’t scored two goals in eight matches. It has done so three consecutive times.

“We're starting to figure it out,” Henderlong said postmatch. “We struggled a little bit to score goals at the end of the season. I think just time playing, even though we played with each other last year. Some new guys, Collins [Oduro] integrating into the team, we're finally clicking. Goals are coming.”

Indiana’s first score of the afternoon came in the 16th minute. Hugo Bacharach swiped the ball right outside Indiana’s 18-yard-box, passed forward to Tommy Mihalic, who played an exceptional through-ball to the open Sarver. Alone, the forward encountered two Ohio State defenders in the 18-yard box, but deked the defender running full-speed and drew the penalty-kick. Rather than the Hoosier fanbase clamoring for the call, the full bleachers cheered instantly. They knew right away.

Maher, one of the team’s two captains, stepped to the spot and drilled it.

“Joey's clutch, and he's one of our top PK guys,” Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley said postmatch. “He's got an unbelievable confidence in it and sometimes you put things on your captain. You say, ‘Alright, this is your team.’ You know what we need to do; he's driven as anyone to get us back to to some really big games. So, I knew that his focus and his detail would be as heightened as anyone.”

The Hoosiers are clicking in October, similar to the past two seasons, as they’ve been finding the necessary put-away goals. Sunday’s win was gutsy by the Hoosiers. They scored quickly, conceded two-thirds of the way through, withstood Ohio State’s continued surge, and then scored off their free-kick with nine minutes left. Sunday was Indiana’s first two goals of the season that resulted in restarts, when play is stopped for throw-ins, free and corner kicks. Yeagley also counts penalties.

“Honestly, we weren't as sharp as we have been,” Yeagley admitted. “Probably the least sharp I think offensively we’ve been, even a bit defensively with our space. It was off. And, we win with two restarts. That's a good sign because you got to be able to win those types of games too. You're not going to have your A-plus attacking game every game … This will give them confidence in a game when they’re not playing great, but man, all we need is that corner. We can win the game this way.”

With the 2-1 victory, Indiana improved to 2-1-2 in Big Ten play, and 5-1-2 at home. The Hoosiers also improved to No. 48 in the RPI, which is subject to change based on the results of matches around college soccer on Sunday. The team’s schedule continues Friday on the road at last-place Maryland. 

Starting midfielder Hugo Bacharach injured his right shoulder twice and didn't play in the second half, but Yeagley thinks that all indications point to Bacharach being healthy enough for Friday. 

Related stories on Indiana Soccer: 

• INDIANA SOCCER BLANKS EVANSVILLE: Taking a break from Big Ten play, Indiana beat Evansville 2-0 at home Wednesday night. The match was delayed an hour in the second half due to lightning. CLICK HERE
• SAM SARVER NAMED B1G OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sarver was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week Tuesday, following his two-goal afternoon in the team's 2-1 victory at No. 19 Penn State. CLICK HERE
• SEASON OUTLOOK: BACHARACH'S PLACEMENT IN THE MIDFIELD: Defender Hugo Bacharach, starting in the midfield for the first time this season, had two assists Saturday. Bacharach commanded the space; this could be the answer. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA BEATS NO. 19 PENN STATE 2-1 ON THE ROAD: Indiana faced Penn State on the road Saturday at Noon ET, winning 2-1 to leap in the RPI and gain points for the Big Ten title hunt. A recap from Happy Valley: CLICK HERE
• JT HARMS FEATURE: JT Harms dove into goalkeeping at 9 years old. He trained with far older players at academies, but his progress stalled at Duke. At Indiana, a position battle brought humility — and confidence. CLICK HERE