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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

sports

Hoosiers travel to Butler, play Michigan

Jerry Yeagley knows nobody is invincible in collegiate soccer this season.\nThe men's soccer coach has seen his Hoosiers struggle to beat less talented teams. He's also seen top notch teams lose games they shouldn't.\n"I look at Duke," Yeagley said. "They were ranked one of the top teams in the nation. They played at home against Radford and lost 3-2. I mean, anything can happen. And they're not the only team that's lost to teams they shouldn't have lost to. You can't look past anybody."\nWith that in mind, Yeagley's Hoosiers travel to Kuntz Stadium tonight to play Butler. The Hoosiers then play at home Sunday against Michigan.\nBoth games could spell trouble for IU.\nIn Butler, the Hoosiers face a team who's lost three straight. The Bulldogs, led by sophomore Nick Pantazi's six goals, lost their past two games in overtime and have a 3-8 record. They're also getting used to a new coach, Todd Bramble.\n"They've had to get familiar with him and his style," Yeagley said. "He's getting to know the players. But we go up there after beating Penn State and before Michigan. This is a big weekend for them. It's going to be their chance to put a mark on their season.\n"I know we're going to get a terrific effort from them, so I'm concerned about that match."\nMichigan should prove just as dangerous as Butler.\nThe Wolverines became a varsity team this season, after years of dominance as a club team. They took Penn St. to overtime before losing 2-1 two weeks ago and improved their record to 4-4 Wednesday with an double-overtime victory over Western Michigan. Michigan is led by freshmen forwards Tom Gritter and Kevin Robinson, who have three goals apiece.\n"The Michigans, all those teams, are going to go out playing us like it's the most important game of the year," sophomore midfielder Pat Noonan said. "It's always good for a team like theirs to upset an Indiana or whoever it might be.\n"If Michigan can come in here and beat us, it's going to show a lot for them and put us down after the victory against Penn State."\nSophomore midfielder Phil Presser said a victory against Michigan will depend on the Hoosiers' playing level.\n"I think we're a lot more confident now," he said. "These coming games should be a test for us to see if we play to our level or their level. We definitely have to get over these next two games so we don't get upset"

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