Indiana Soccer Hangs On, Beats Wisconsin 2-1 in Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal

Indiana hosted the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament Friday night. By the time the Hoosiers went up 2-0 in the 55th minute, it seemed like they would cruise to victory. Wisconsin equalized in the 75th minute and had more chances, but Indiana survived.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — In the last two meetings between Indiana soccer and Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament – back-to-back seasons in 2016 and 2017 – the Badgers advanced via penalty shootout. On Friday night, Indiana captain Joey Maher buried the team’s first goal at the penalty spot in poetic justice, as the Hoosiers held out 2-1 in the opening-round victory.

Indiana’s backline denied Wisconsin from posting any shots on goal in the first half. The Hoosiers only had one shot on target in that span, but it was Maher’s 13th-minute goal to put Indiana ahead. The penalty call seemed generous. Indiana rookie Collins Oduro chased Noah Glorioso back into Wisconsin’s box, and Oduro was obstructed as both entangled each other.

“I don't think [Glorioso] expected Oduro to kind of come around him like that,” Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley said. "That that was why [Oduro] was able to create it. He doesn't go down. I say ‘Collins if you get fouled, go down’ … So, he really got fouled today. I really have to tell him, ‘Collins if you get fouled, go down in the box, because that's a penalty.’”

Maher had converted his only other penalty kick of the season in mid-October at home. The captain is a perfect two-for-two, and has converted penalties on each goal of Indiana’s pitch. In the first 20 minutes, however, Yeagley said the Hoosiers were stagnant. Winning the Big Ten regular season last Sunday seemed like the plausible explanation for the sluggish start.

But Yeagley said that Indiana wasn’t accustomed to Wisconsin’s formation shape of three players in the midfield, which it hadn’t deployed yet this season. The head coach also considered that although it befuddled Indiana to begin with, it disoriented the Badgers in the second half. In the 55th minute, Indiana’s leading scorer and facilitator, Samuel Sarver, drove through three Badgers to reach the edge of the box, then crossed to the scoring Maouloune Goumballe.

“Wasn’t surprised," Goumballe said about Sarver’s nifty surge. "He does that all the time."

Goumballe’s second goal in three matches felt like the dagger, as Indiana goalkeeper JT Harms didn't need to make any saves by that point, and Wisconsin wasn’t lethal in the attacking third. Wisconsin’s first shot on target arrived in the 65th minute. But 10 minutes following that, Wisconsin rebuffed the ongoing shutout. As Badgers worked down the sidelines, Max Keenan welcomed his teammate’s cross and buried the header past Harms.

Wisconsin benefitted from the generous deflection on the cross and continued to fire with 15 minutes remaining. Harms made an outstanding save in the 78th minute. In the 83rd, Markie Hrvojevic’s half-volley strike went just over the bar. In the final minute, Patrick McDonald turned the ball over, and Wisconsin drove the length of the field to put up one final shot, though Harms came up with his third and final save. Wisconsin’s season was on the line.

“They threw everything,” Maher said about the conclusion of the match. “They had like six, seven guys in the box, even their goalie at the very end. They gave us everything, they gave us a lot of problems. The biggest thing for us, especially after they got that goal, was just weathering the storm … Winning the throw in your defensive third, functional clear, getting the line up. Those extra details are something that we can still improve on.”

Indiana advances to the program’s 11th consecutive Big Ten Tournament semifinals. The top-seeded Hoosiers will host No. 5 Michigan sometime Wednesday night in Bloomington. Indiana will likely need to win again to be considered safe for an at-large NCAA Tournament bid, should it not win the Big Ten Tournament title. 

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