Yeagley happy with goals

Coming into the season, IU Coach Todd Yeagley said he wasn’t sure what to expect from his team.

Seven games in, most of those questions have been answered.

The No. 9 Hoosiers remain undefeated, 5-0-2. They play Penn State on Friday to open the Big Ten season.

While the offense was a concern after former IU forward Will Bruin left for the MLS, defense and goaltending has carried the team thus far.

This season, junior goalkeeper Luis Soffner posted solid numbers with a 19-17-3 career record and a GAA of 1.13. Soffner has taken a huge leap toward being a shutdown goalie for the Hoosiers.

In seven games, he has only allowed four goals and has already notched three shutouts, matching his total from last year in 11 fewer games.

His play has allowed the Hoosiers to dictate the course of the game defensively.

“It’s going to start with us in the back to generate offense, whether it’s Tommy (Meyer), Caleb (Konstanski) or whoever is in the back to maybe skip the midfield and try to transition past our forwards,” Soffner said. “If we can play quick, I think it generates offense out of there.”

After Bruin was drafted No. 11 overall by the Houston Dynamo, the Hoosiers appeared to have a huge void without Bruin’s 18 goals and five assists.

Indiana has found a balanced attack that has kept its opponents off balance, racking up 16 goals in its last six games.

“The guys are being efficient,” Yeagley said. “We’ve taken our chances well. When you do that you can score some goals. I like the mindset of the group. We just have to keep going.”

The Hoosiers have gotten at least four points out of six different players and have six different players with at least eight shots on goal thus far.

Last season they had six players with at least 11 points, with now-departed Bruin leading the team with 41 points, followed by former Hoosier Andy Adlard with 21.

“It’s a different feel — we’re going a little deeper and getting some fresher bodies than we did last year,” Yeagley said. “With the form of some of our newer players and returning guys, teams are not able to lock in as much as they were able to last year.”