Offense clicks in Big Ten opener

Following the Hoosiers game against Hartwick last weekend, coach Jerry Yeagley warned that the floodgates would open soon, and IU's offense would roll over someone.\nThat someone happened to be Michigan State, and the Hoosier offense opened up less than a minute into the game and washed the Spartans away in the Big Ten conference opener.\nIf the past was any indication of how No. 9 IU would fare, Sunday's match certainly followed the pattern. IU (5-1-2) has never lost to No. 22 Michigan State (5-2) in 30 matches, and the 6-1 drubbing also increased the Hoosiers' win streak over conference foes to 31 games in the regular season.\nIU's offense has provided many scoring opportunities, but the Hoosiers were not able to capitalize on the chances until Sunday.\n"To get this type of performance is a big boost for this team because we have been struggling offensively," Yeagley said. "It certainly was a statement game for us. We generated a lot of confidence today."\nThe Hoosiers found the back of the net on very few occasions compared to the number of chances they have created in the first seven games, scoring on a dismal 8.6 percent of their shots. \n"The guys didn't give up or lose faith, but I think today they felt they started to show what they're capable of doing," Yeagley said. "We're not anticipating scoring five or six goals a game, but we know we're capable."\nAlthough IU has struggled to finish on balls, two steady threats have existed and made their presence felt against the Spartans. Seniors Ryan Mack and Pat Noonan led the Hoosiers with nine and eight points respectively entering the game.\nNoonan tallied two goals and two assists, putting him over the 100-point mark for his career. The six points by Noonan set a career high for points in the game and Mack set his own career high with five points on two goals and an assist.\nNoonan's success of the weekend didn't end with his scoring tallies. The midfielder was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for the second consecutive week on Monday and was also named College Soccer News\' National Player of the Week for last week and was on the National Team of the Week.\nSophomore Ned Grabavoy started many of the scores with ankle-breaking moves that seemed to baffle the Spartans defense, and assisted on one of Mack's goals and both of Noonan's.\nGoing into the game, Michigan State senior goalkeeper Tyler Robinson had allowed only one goal in four games, but even Robinson fell victim to the Hoosiers' explosive offense.\n"When you score a goal in the first minute and get three in the first half, it gives you a comfort zone and more confidence in your finishing abilities," Noonan said. "It's kind of a breakout game for us, so hopefully we can build on this."\nAll year, the Hoosiers have had no problem getting their shots, and today was no different as they launched 24 shots.\n"If you look at all the chances we did have, it could have been a lot worse than it was," Grabavoy said. "Today it felt like it was a team and it was not just individuals in the final third. If you look at all our goals, we had really nice assists and guys were running in the box. This game was definitely a confidence builder, especially going into the rest of the Big Ten season"