No. 23 IU men's soccer upsets No. 8 Northwestern

Like Jordan and  Pippen, Montana and Rice, sophomore forward/midfielder Andy Adlard and freshman forward Will Bruin make a good couple.

Bruin’s header off Adlard’s corner kick in the 26th minute gave IU a 1-0 lead in Friday’s match. Together the duo has scored 10 out of the 26 total team goals for the season. They have also notched a combined total of five game-winning goals.  

Later in the game, Adlard notched another assist when senior midfielder John Mellencamp put the ball near the right post after Adlard’s miss in the 38th minute for a 2-0 advantage.

“I was relieved almost (after Bruin scored),” Adlard said. “We have so many chances in corners, and we’re finally putting them away. Will made a good run in the box, got where he needed to be and finished it well.”

Despite it being Senior Night, it took a freshman and a sophomore to close out the Hoosiers’ regular season with a Big Ten win and a No. 3 seed in the conference tournament. IU finished the regular season 10-5-3, a two-win drop from last season’s 12-4-3 season tally. IU also recorded a 3-3 conference record, down from 5-0-2.

While IU has struggled against poorer teams, the Hoosiers’ victory improved their record against ranked teams to 4-0-2.

IU coach Mike Freitag said the team needs to improve its mentality and come prepared to face every team, no matter its standing.

“I think it’s all between the ears,” Freitag said. “It’s not hard to get up for the big games. It’s sometimes hard to get up for teams you think you’re supposed to be better than.”

The team tallied 20 shots in the match, making up for a lack of offensive presence in their previous two matches against Kentucky and Penn State.

“When we played ranked teams, we come out and we are more aggressive,” Mellencamp said. “It’s like we want it more. But as the season draws to an end, there’s not going to be any game left that isn’t a big game.”

Coming off a 1-0 loss to Penn State and only six days away from the Big Ten Tournament, the Hoosiers’ win provides momentum for a team whose season has been unpredictable.

“It definitely helps build confidence as we go into the tournament, which is crucial for us,” Mellencamp said.

The Hoosiers will also have to deal with the absence of senior Brad Ring, who missed his third consecutive match. Freshman defender Tommy Meyer and sophomore midfielder Rich Balchan substituted for Ring.

“Obviously it’s tough to adjust to that,” Mellencamp said. “With a couple games under our belts, we’ve kind of learned how to communicate with each other, how to maintain our shape, what players’ tendencies are.”

Their familiarity will be vital as the Big Ten Tournament begins this week. Last year, IU captured the Big Ten regular season championship but lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament final 0-0 (5-4 PKs). The Hoosiers will take on the Buckeyes in the first round on Thursday.

If they want to bring home hardware this year, the team might have to rely on its duo.