Women's soccer to host first home games of season in Hoosier Classic

The IU women’s soccer team is fancying a little payback this weekend, IU coach Mick Lyon said, as they host the third annual Hoosier Classic this weekend at Bill Armstrong Stadium.\nAt 7 p.m. Friday, the Hoosiers will square off against the Loyola Marymount Lions. The Lions come to Bloomington with an 0-2-0 record and will also face Maryland (1-0-1) at 11 a.m. Sunday.\nThe Hoosiers will finish their weekend against USC at 1:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon. USC comes in undefeated at 2-0-0 and ranked No. 19 in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll.\nThe Hoosiers lost 6-0 the last time they squared off against the Trojans. The match was at USC in 2005, but has not been forgotten by the players and coaches who were there.\n“Any time you play a team that you have played before and lost to, it’s a big rivalry,” senior midfielder Katy Stewart said. “So we’re just going to look to come out and show them a little bit about what Indiana soccer is like now.” \nStewart also said the current Hoosier squad is more prepared than the squad in 2005, a sentiment Lyon shared.\n“We had to make a little bit of changes last time when we went out there and that upset us a little and we really never got into stride and USC really took it to us,” Lyon said. “So we fancy that we ought to give them a little bit of payback.”\nStewart, a co-captain on the squad, said that for preparation, her squad would look at film of USC and talk about them, but believes the Hoosiers will go out and play their own game against the Trojans.\n“We are going to play our game,” Stewart said. “We are doing different things with our lineups and stuff like that, but it’s not because of them, it’s because of the way we want to play against them.”\nUSC comes into the contest with young talent. The Trojans have five starting freshmen on their squad who have all contributed in their first two games, but it is freshman Megan Ohai who made the largest impact. So far this season, Ohai has registered a team high three goals, two of which have been game-winners.\nThe Hoosiers, however, have contributing underclassmen as well. Last weekend, sophomores Kelly Lawrence and Natalie O’Bryan and freshman Chloe McKay each recorded their first career goals in a 4-3 come from behind win against Jacksonville. Freshman goal keeper Lauren Hollandsworth has also contributed significantly goal. \nHollandsworth split time in the Jacksonville match Sunday with senior Megan Reinhardt after playing a full 90 minutes against Florida. Against the now- No. 14 Gators (1-1-0), Hollandsworth only let in one goal and had five saves. \nHollandsworth discussed what it was like to be a freshman goalie on the squad.\n“At the beginning, it was really stressful being around all of the older girls, but now I am really comfortable with them,” Hollandsworth said. “They are all really nice and really good players and when you play with good players it makes you want to step up and play better.”\nUSC will face off against Maryland at 4:30 p.m. Friday, followed by the Hoosiers’ match against Loyola Marymount.