Freshmen lead IU against Butler

With eight minutes remaining in IU's Big Ten opener against Michigan State, it appeared freshman Jed Zayner's defensive misplay would cost the Hoosiers the game and their 39-game Big Ten winning streak.\nBut, as one freshman's miscue led to a goal, another freshman scored a goal. Jacob Peterson tied the game and salvaged the streak with a goal in the 82nd minute.\nAt times this season, half of the 11 IU players on the field have been freshmen and not since his son's 1991 squad can Coach Jerry Yeagley recall an IU team so young and inexperienced. \n"When you have 10 field players and half of them are freshmen, that is just unheard of at IU," Yeagley said. "But these guys are no longer freshmen now that they have a half season under their belt."\nFive freshmen, including Zayner, Peterson, Julian Dieterle and red shirts John Hayden and Josh Tudela have started at least five of the eight games this season. In fact, Zayner and Dieterle have started all eight games for the Hoosiers, six of which were against ranked opponents. \nThe Hoosiers, (2-3-3) are off to their worst start since becoming a varsity program in 1973. Their 36-game Big Ten winning streak was snapped and they enter today's tilt against in-state rival Butler. But Yeagley continues to believe that his unusually young team can still turn around this season. \n"We have been up against six ranked teams this year and five of our six non-wins have been overtime games," Yeagley said. "We have been in every game and felt we have had the better of every game but we did not come out with the result we wanted. Now our youth may have had something to do with that along with a heck of a lot of bad breaks and bad luck."\nOne of the freshmen hoping to change the bad luck and pick up some victories is Peterson, who at just 17 years old is the youngest of the group. The Portage, Mich., native has two points this season -- one on an assist and one game-tying, streak-saving goal. \n"Our first couple of games we made some mistakes, that when we get some more experience, we won't make those mistakes," Peterson said. "But, for me it is just going to take me getting used to how more physical and more developed everyone else is, which means I'll just have to hit the weights."\nAnother of the freshmen seeing significant minutes is Zayner, who along with Dieterle, patrols the Hoosiers defense. Zayner and Deiterle have only allowed eight goals on 30 less shots then IU has taken thus far.\nZayner said he is appreciative of every opportunity he gets to contribute, but also understands the advantage of playing on a team with so many freshmen. \n"I just thank God that we get to start and play because of how good this team really can be," Zayner said. "Playing this much is important to our success because it shows how much the freshmen really want to not just sit, but play." \nYeagley said he does not believe in using the freshmen as scapegoats or as excuses for the bad start, but does believe all six of the freshmen will have an enormous effect on the outcome of the season. \n"There is no doubt with these freshmen, on any given day, that we can play with anyone, but at the same time it has been more difficult to produce more goals," Yeagley said. "The freshmen will determine our success this year, they will either make us or break us."\n-- Contact staff writer Daniel Cohen at djcohen@indiana.edu.