Indiana freshmen provide flare, but fail to finish in another scoreless draw

Three matches into the Indiana ladies’s soccer 2022 season, and the group nonetheless hasn’t scored or conceded a aim. The Hoosiers drew 0-0 to Ball State College Thursday evening in Bloomington. 

Though the match wasn’t performed at Invoice Armstrong Stadium as a result of unplayable discipline situations, Indiana had the chance to place one at the back of the web given what number of photographs that they had. 

Indiana had a season-high 12 photographs within the match, and 6 of them got here from freshmen. Defenders Arianna Rose and Natasha Kim, midfielder Izzy Smith and ahead Sarah Sirdah have been the 4 Indiana first-year gamers that recorded photographs. Rose and Smith each had two whereas the others had one.

Within the 57th minute, Rose was subbed off as a result of an harm whereas making an attempt to be aggressive within the opposing half. Rose was answerable for the one two photographs on aim Sunday in opposition to Virginia Tech College. 

“I feel it’s her ankle,” head coach Erwin van Bennekom stated after the sport. “I feel she shall be good.” 

Indiana began the match off sluggish, however picked up the tempo within the second half, with eight of its 12 photographs coming within the last 45 minutes. Each of the Hoosiers’ photographs on aim got here within the second half, however neither beat Cardinal sophomore goalkeeper Bethany Moser. A kind of photographs on course got here from Smith, who stepped right into a shot from outdoors the field, resulting in a diving save from Moser. 

[ Indiana women’s soccer unable to capitalize offensively in 0-0 draw versus Ball State]

Smith and Sirdah have been unafraid to shoot from wherever, one thing the group didn’t possess final yr. Final yr’s gamers lacked confidence within the attacking third, evidenced by excessive passing numbers and low taking pictures numbers. 

The Hoosiers’ starvation to attain is clear by the freshmen’s type of play, contemplating Indiana hasn’t scored a aim in over 697 minutes of play courting again to final season. Having the boldness to shoot the ball and never be embarrassed with the result’s one thing senior midfielder Alaina Kalin talked about in the course of the group’s media day earlier than the primary exhibition match, performed on August 6. 

Indiana can have every week off and try to snap its seven-game scoreless streak at 7 p.m. subsequent Thursday at dwelling in opposition to Indiana State College.