Freshman forward Colton Swan kneels on the ground. The Detroit, Michigan, native throws his hands up to the sky and says something to himself while his teammates run back down the field.
This moment — and the solo celebration that ensued — from Swan came after his second goal of the match against Rutgers to give Indiana men’s soccer a two-goal advantage in the 17th minute.
Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley viewed the performance from Swan as one that was necessary Friday night.
“Colton needed a big night,” Yeagley said after the match. “If there was one player that needed it, it was him. And I think he can help our team in this next stage, the tournament, because he was a little unsure at times this season with some of his missed opportunities.”
Ultimately, Swan's two goals proved to be enough. Indiana also netted a couple of insurance goals in the second half, ending the night with a 5-0 victory over Rutgers on Friday at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington.
Only 12 minutes prior to his second goal, Swan delivered the first goal of the match.
The play was set up by senior forward Palmer Ault. The Noblesville, Indiana, native dribbled through a pair of Scarlet Knights defenders before finding Swan who was at the top of the opponent's box.
Swan received the pass and delivered a sliding kick that went over Rutgers senior goalkeeper Ciaran Dalton to extend Indiana’s lead.
However, Ault, in his own respect, is a top candidate for the most prestigious award in the country: The MAC Hermann National Player of the Year.
Prior to the match Friday, the senior forward was tied for the most goals (15) in the country with University of Illinois Chicago junior midfielder Edouard Nys and North Carolina State University junior forward Donavan Phillip.
But after recording his nation-leading 16th goal of the season in the 51st minute, Ault added onto one of the many accomplishments he’s achieved so far this season.
Besides his superstar goal-scoring ability, Ault’s playmaking has been on display as well this season. He has tallied 10 total assists to go along with his 16 goals.
And tonight, Ault's playmaking helped Swan ignite Indiana’s offensive attack. The goals Swan scored helped pushed the rest of the team to a much-needed victory after a 2-0 loss a week prior against Northwestern.
“Getting the goals early helped us set the tone,” Ault said. “That was a great performance from him (Swan). He’s been doing a lot of the dirty work out there; he just hasn’t really gotten the final product that we know he has in him. Seeing him get the early goals tonight was not only crucial for our team, but for himself.”
Ultimately, Swan’s clinical attack in the first half opened another level for Indiana to excel as the game progressed.
“He played well outside of the two goals,” Yeagley said. “He gives us a better aerial attack, and his challenging and pressing tonight was excellent. He’s in a good place now, which is good for us moving forward.”
The Hoosiers scored two more goals in the second half aside from Ault’s goal. Junior forward Clay Murador scored in the 54th minute and redshirt junior defender Breckin Minzey got in on the action in the 59th minute.
Indiana shut out Rutgers for the remaining 30 minutes of the match, recording its first clean sheet of the season in Big Ten play and the first since the Hoosiers beat Hanover 8-0 on Oct. 17.
Despite Indiana’s comfortable win, UCLA beat Washington 4-2 on Friday night. That pushed UCLA two points ahead of Indiana, and with the regular season wrapped up, the Hoosiers missed out on the Big Ten Tournament.
Indiana’s next match is to be determined. Despite missing out on Big Ten action moving forward, the Hoosiers will likely find a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Follow reporters Elakai Anela (@elakai_anela and eanela@iu.edu) and Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer and matfuent@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men's soccer season.
