Washington’s women's soccer squad has built its reputation this season by overwhelming teams before halftime. The Huskies entered Thursday night having outscored opponents 10–0 in the first halves while piling up a 70–30 shot advantage in those periods.
Indiana, however, was not daunted.
The Hoosiers limited Washington to just two shots in the opening 45 minutes and carried that defensive resilience through the night, earning a hard-fought 0–0 draw at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington.
In the postgame conference, Indiana head coach Josh Rife said he believed the tie was more than just a salvage.
“I’ll reframe it a little different — I know people would say salvage a point, but I think we earned it, but I think we could've earned more,” Rife said. “For good stretches we made things difficult for them, I thought we had created some great moments for ourselves.”
Indiana’s defensive successes were the story early, frustrating a Huskies side used to striking first.
“Anytime you hold a team like Washington scoreless, it says a lot about our effort defensively,” Rife said.
The Hoosiers nearly found their breakthrough midway through the second half. Junior midfielder Kennedy Neighbors slipped a pass forward to freshman defender Grace Hamm, who cut inside to the top of the 18 and ripped a shot that ricocheted off a defender’s arm.
After review, officials waved off appeals for handball, keeping Indiana from the penalty stripe.
A minute later, Hamm again drove at the Huskies’ back line and was tripped from behind, initially drawing a yellow. But after yet another trip to the monitor, the referee pulled a red card, reducing Washington to 10 players for the final 20 minutes. The call sent the Indiana bench and home crowd into celebration, offering Indiana a golden opportunity to pull ahead late in the match.
But instead of seizing control, Indiana struggled to settle. Passes went astray, and the urgency to capitalize turned into rushed play.
“It almost felt like we got a little frantic when we went up a player,” Rife said. “There was this expectation we had to create something every time we had the ball. But even when you’re up a player, it’s still really hard to score against a well-organized group.”
Despite the advantage on the field, Indiana couldn’t capitalize. Possessions in the Huskies area broke down with hurried decisions and errant passes, leaving the Hoosiers with their third draw of the year.
Still, the shutout — Indiana's fourth of the season — showed the defensive resilience that continues to define the group.
“The group that came before us really laid a great foundation of defensive toughness, and this team has carried that mentality,” Rife said.
While the Hoosiers continue to search for a breakthrough goal, they left Thursday encouraged, Neighbors said. Against a Washington team that had dominated every first half it played this season, Indiana never let the Huskies dictate.
“The tie definitely gives us confidence,” Neighbors said. “We know what we’re capable of, and while we are happy with the draw, we’re just not satisfied.”
That balance of encouragement and urgency is where Indiana finds itself now, confident in its defensive identity but still searching for the attacking spark to turn draws into wins.
“We’re not putting up huge numbers as far as shots, which is fine — it just means we need to be more clinical with the moments we do get,” Rife said. “If we can find one early and force teams to come out against us, that plays to our strength.”
The match ended without goals, but not without positives. With the results, Indiana remains undefeated at home.
Neighbors said the result still carried belief for the group, even if the Hoosiers left wanting more.
“Tying teams like Xavier (University), Illinois and now Washington instills confidence in us,” Neighbors said. “We know what we’re capable of, but we’re not satisfied.”
Follow reporters Noah Gerkey (@Noah_Gerk and ngerkey@iu.edu) and Will Kwiatkowski (@WKwiatkowski_15 and wdkwiatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana women's soccer season.
