For the first time in 25 days, Indiana women’s soccer dropped a match. After four draws and a win, the Hoosiers’ unbeaten streak was snapped at five Thursday.
Indiana continued its two-match road trip in the Great Lakes State against Michigan State. The Spartans entered the contest ranked No. 16 in the country in the United Soccer Coaches Women's Top 25 Poll.
Michigan State carried a 4-1-3 conference record while also having the toughest strength of schedule in the country.
That success continued Thursday night as the Spartans were too much for Indiana.
The first 40 minutes of action were similar to what Indiana has produced this year. The Hoosiers played solid defense, controlling the pace of play.
But the Hoosiers struggled to produce on offense. The Cream and Crimson put three shots on goal in the first half but were unable to convert any of the opportunities into goals. Michigan State could not find much success, either, until late in the first half.
In the 41st minute, Spartan junior midfielder Kayla Briggs produced the first punch. Briggs won the ball off of a deflection, took a few dribbles to her right and fired a shot from outside the box. The shot ricocheted off senior goalkeeper Dani Jacobson’s diving attempt and found the back of the net.
At times this season, it seemed like one goal was all a team needed to knock off Indiana. Recently, though, the Hoosiers have stepped up their offensive attack and been able to come back in games.
The Spartans continued to attack, and just a few minutes after Briggs’ goal, they found another score.
With less than a minute until halftime, junior defender Ella Janz worked her way past two defenders into the Indiana box before depositing a goal into the bottom left corner.
The goal doubled Michigan State’s lead and left Indiana two goals behind heading into the break.
After Jacobson left the posts after the first half, graduate student keeper Sally Rainey stepped in, looking to keep Indiana close. The goalkeeper spot has been split between Rainey and Jacobson this year, each getting their own halves.
Rainey delivered a clean sheet in the second half to keep the score within reach, saving three Spartan shots.
The Hoosiers showed more aggression and signs of potential offensive success in the second half but never found a score. A pair of corners and a pair of shots on goal gave Indiana some hope of coming back, but those chances were denied by Michigan State freshman goalkeeper Noelle Henning.
The 2-0 loss drops the Hoosiers to 1-3-5 in the Big Ten and 4-5-6 on the season. Indiana is now tied for 13th place in the conference, with just two matches left to play.
The Hoosiers will face Penn State on Sunday and Iowa on Oct. 26 in the last two matches of the regular season. Both teams currently rank above Indiana in the table, being tied for seventh and fourth, respectively.
The next two matches are the last chances for Indiana to make a push towards a Big Ten tournament berth. Missing the Big Ten will also likely end the Hoosiers’ season, one that has been filled with ups and downs.
Indiana likely needs positive results in the final two matches, along with some losses from the teams that sit above them in the table.
Penn State is next up on the docket for Indiana. The Nittany Lions will enter the match coming off a victory over Purdue on Thursday, with a 4-3-2 conference record.
The Hoosiers will have a quick turnaround from Thursday’s match as they return home to take on Penn State at 1 p.m. Sunday at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington. The game will be streamed on Big Ten+.
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.
