Hoosiers await start of NCAA Tournament after receiving No. 7 seed Monday

One day after winning the 11th Big Ten Tournament title in the program's history, the IU men's soccer team earned the No. 7 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.\nThe team gathered at 4 p.m. Monday at Yogi's Grill and Bar to watch the broadcast on ESPNEWS, anxiously waiting to see their name as the bracket was unveiled. When "No. 7 Indiana" came on the screen, the initial reaction from the team was positive.\n"That's a good bracket," shouted out one player.\nBeing one of the top 16 seeds gives the Hoosiers a first-round bye. IU will face the winner of the Northern Illinois University versus Loyola University-Chicago game Nov. 15. \nThe team is satisfied with the seed it earned, said Josh Tudela, IU's senior captain and the Big Ten Player of the Year.\n"It's exactly what we expected," Tudela said. "We expected to get anywhere from a five to an eight seed, so it's good because we have two home games (and) an away game most likely."\nThe road to the 17th College Cup presents many challenges to a team with seven players getting their first extended playing time in the NCAA Tournament. If the seeds hold, IU will have to get past No. 10 Santa Clara University and No. 2 Wake Forest University to make the men's soccer Final Four. Duke University received the No. 1 seed for the tournament.\nBut the team must get past the first game before it can think of going to St. Louis, the site of this year's College Cup.\n"We always think the first game of the NCAA Tournament is always the hardest because you do have a week and a half off," Tudela said. "You have to find a way to keep yourself motivated and ready to go."\nThe Hoosiers lost to in-state rival Notre Dame 2-0 in their first game of last year's tournament.\n"Sometimes a bye is not good because you have too much time on your hands," IU coach Mike Freitag said. "Hopefully we will keep the guys fresh but also battle-tested. We will have some hard training to keep them ready, but the key thing is to be fresh, rested and injury-free."\nAfter a disappointing season for the Big Ten conference, Tudela said he was not surprised to see Northwestern as the only other Big Ten team to make the field of 48. Freitag was surprised that Ohio State did not make the tournament.\n"There are going to be a lot of people surprised and upset today, but that's the way it works," Freitag said.\nThe team will hope to strike a balance between working hard and resting in the eight days before its quest to St. Louis begins. One of the Hoosiers getting his first crack at the NCAA Tournament -- freshman defender Kevin Alston -- is excited for play to begin.\n"I'm hoping to make it far," Alston said. "I can assume the intensity level goes up naturally, and this is what the season is all for. Hopefully it is good"