Road trip brings weekend sweep out East

For the first five games of the season the women’s soccer team has traded wins and losses, but after this weekend’s results the Hoosiers have their first two-game winning streak.

The Hoosiers (4-3) won both their games away from Bloomington. On Friday, IU defeated George Mason 4-1, and Sunday the Hoosiers downed Loyola (Md.) 2-1.

“It was very important to us to get two wins, because when the Big Ten season starts you will have to play Friday and Sunday games on the road,” said IU coach Mick Lyon.

Lyon said the team needed to prove to itself they could sweep a weekend.

In Friday’s game, sophomore Chloe McKay was the key playmaker. Despite not being in the starting lineup, McKay totaled five points on two goals and an assist on the night.

McKay and the Hoosiers got on the board first in the 27th minute, when classmate Leigh Ann Cummings crossed the ball to McKay, who then headed the ball past the George Mason goalkeeper.

“When I came in I knew I was going in at offensive midfielder, so I just kept thinking all we needed is one goal,” McKay said. “I didn’t have to be the one to score it, but I just knew after we got one goal we would get it going.”

IU kept the pressure on the Patriots, scoring three minutes later. Junior Christie Kotynski scored her first goal of the season at the 30th minute, receiving a pass from freshman Devon Beach. McKay achieved her first career multi-goal game, scoring off a corner kick deflected off a George Mason player.

Junior Liz Holby concluded the scoring for the Hoosiers, scoring her third goal of the season in the 85th minute. Hoosiers goalkeeper Lauren Hollandsworth narrowly missed a chance of earning a shutout, when the Patriots spoiled the opportunity in the 88th minute.

In yesterday’s game, the Hoosiers had to battle more than just the Loyola Greyhounds. The two teams played in a heat index of more than 100 degrees and ended the first half in a stalemate.

Beach broke the tie, stealing the ball away from a Loyola defender and firing her third goal of the season. The Greyhounds tied the game at one in the 61st minute. But IU responded 35 seconds later, as Holby scored her fourth goal of the season off a rebound from a Beach shot.

McKay said these wins this weekend were ones the team had to have.

“Going on the road and winning these games was needed,” she said. “We have put pressure on ourselves with the earlier struggles, and we can’t give away anymore games.”

Hollandsworth said although two wins on the road were good, the team will stay humble.

“It’s going to give us momentum heading into next week, but for us we don’t want to get too confident and get ahead of ourselves,” she said.

The Hoosiers have a short week and are back in action at 7 p.m. Thursday in Bloomington against an in-state rival, the Butler Bulldogs.