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(10/09/06 3:17am)
Chay Cain kisses each of his goalposts before the start of every game. \n"It's a little superstition I've had since I was probably about 11 when I started playing between the posts," the IU men's soccer team's sophomore goalkeeper said. "It's just for good luck. I mean, I'm Irish. I believe in luck. It helps me out back there."\nCain also talks to his posts -- another ritual before the clock starts ticking. What he tells them, though, is between Cain and the tall metal bars. \n"That's private," he said with a smile. "I can't tell you that."\nWhatever he does in front of the net seems to be working. With the Hoosiers' 1-0 defeat of the Northwestern Wildcats Saturday, Cain recorded his second shutout in as many games. With Cain in goal, the Hoosiers have tallied four shutouts, all in the past six games. \n"His play's been phenomenal," sophomore midfielder John Mellencamp said of Cain. "He's come up big a couple games, making big stops for us, keeping balls out of the net."\nCain made six saves against the Louisville Cardinals Wednesday and stopped four Wildcat shots Saturday night. \nStatistics can't explain Cain's biggest play of the night. \nWith IU up by a goal late in the game, the Wildcats mounted an aggressive attack to try to tie the game. \nOne Wildcat midfielder made a charge down the right side of the field with less than three minutes remaining, no defender in sight, only he and Cain. Instead of taking a shot, the Northwestern player attempted to cross the ball to Wildcat David Roth, who was barreling down the middle of the field in good position to score.\nCain reached his arms out and dove to the right, stopping the pass before it could do any damage.\n"We did turn it up a notch to try to get the equalizer," Northwestern coach Tom Lenahan said. "I thought we had them on the ropes a little bit the last 20 minutes."\nWith his back against the ropes, Cain made sure IU never got punched in the nose.\n"When it comes down to the last six minutes of the game and you're up, all you're really focused on is getting the ball," he said. "Each time, nothing else runs through your head. You just focus on the ball, try to make the save and keep your team in the game."\nLast season Cain rarely had the chance to make such saves. As a freshman, Cain never started a game, playing backup to then-sophomore Chris Munroe. Before this season started, Cain knew he could compete for the starting gig. \nHe and Munroe alternated starts at the beginning of the season -- each playing two of IU's first four games. After the Hoosiers' first loss of the season, a 5-4 overtime loss to Notre Dame with Munroe in goal, Cain has kissed the goalposts every single game.\nCain and IU coach Mike Freitag said the defense deserves as much credit as the goalkeeper for IU's most recent shutouts. \n"We haven't really given up a lot of quality chances," Freitag said. "We've given up some chances but not quality chances."\nThanks to Cain and the IU defense, the Hoosiers are unbeaten in their last six games and are rolling with a four-game win streak. \nSaturday's win, just like the rest, was sealed with a kiss.
(10/05/06 4:59am)
With freshman forward Darren Yeagle out of the lineup due to mononucleosis, the IU men's soccer team downed the Louisville Cardinals 2-0 Wednesday night thanks to goals from the team's most and least experienced players. \nTeam captain and senior midfielder Josh Tudela and freshman midfielder Eric Alexander found the back of the net for the Hoosiers to increase the team's win streak to three games and its unbeaten streak to five. \n"It's great to finally put a team away and get a shutout at the same time," Tudela said. "Hopefully we'll keep doing that."\nWith less than five minutes ticked off the clock, Alexander made a drive toward the Cardinal goal when he was tackled by a Louisville defender, setting up a free kick for the Hoosiers. Tudela took the kick from 25 yards out and drilled it into the top right corner of the Cardinal goal. It was Tudela's first point of the season. \n"I've been working on that in practice just about everyday. (I) just got a little lucky, good hit on the ball," Tudela said. \nHe added that he was "amazed to finally" get his first point of the season. \nTudela has been taking many of the Hoosiers' free kicks recently and missed by mere inches on a direct kick against Michigan State Sunday.\nTudela was determined to finish his opportunities from that point on. \n"I just came out yesterday and hit quite a few free kicks to get ready for tonight's game," he said.\nTudela's goal wasn't the only first of the night. Alexander, in his fifth career start, connected on his first ever college goal. \n"It's definitely a load off my shoulders to finally get my first college goal," he said. \nIn the 30th minute, freshman midfielder Kevin Alston made a run down the right side of the field and juked past two Louisville defenders. Alston took the ball into the Cardinal penalty box and crossed the ball to the center of the field to Alexander, who buried the ball in the Cardinal goal. \nAlexander called the hookup the "freshman connection."\n"Kevin just made a good run down the line and drew a couple of defenders," he said. "I gradually made it up the field. Nobody really tracked me, so I was just standing wide open on the (penalty kick) mark. He played a good ball in, but I was a little off balanced, so I had to slide for it, got a lucky touch and found the back of the net."\nAlexander is one of three freshman players who have started the past few games for the Hoosiers. \n"It's been pretty incredible, given the team we have right now," Alexander said of the freshmen's impact. "I think we have a lot of talent on this team, and it's pretty nice starting three freshmen ... Making the jump from high school or club to college is a lot different. I remember my first game. I was real nervous. Every time I step on the field I get more and more comfortable."\nIU coach Mike Freitag is not completely comfortable with his team's performance. \n"An early goal is always a good thing, but sometimes it can let you get your guard down," Freitag said. "Tonight I thought we played well at times, but I still want a consistent 90 minutes, and we haven't gotten that yet."\nThe coach has patience, though. \n"Rome wasn't built in a day, and a soccer team takes a little more than a month also," he said.
(10/04/06 3:14am)
If the IU men's soccer team hopes to increase its win streak to three games, it will have to do so without the Big Ten offensive player of the week.\nFreshman forward Darren Yeagle will not play in Wednesday's game against the University of Louisville because of illness, IU coach Mike Freitag said Tuesday. Sophomore midfielder Brian Ackley or sophomore forward Kevin Noschang will start in Yeagle's place.\nThe No. 14 Hoosiers take on the Cardinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Bill Armstrong Stadium.\nYeagle leads the team in goals scored with five and points with 11. He attended Tuesday's practice but sat on the sideline wearing sandals.\n"When somebody goes down, somebody steps up," Freitag said. "It's their opportunity, and that's what I expect is going to happen."
(10/02/06 4:12am)
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Before the season started, IU coach Mike Freitag called senior Julian Dieterle "the heart and soul of our team." But for the past two games, Dieterle has been on the sidelines wearing a yellow penny over his IU jersey.\nDieterle, one of Freitag's team captains and defensemen, did not play for the Hoosiers in their 2-1 victory against Michigan State. Neither did sophomore midfielder Brian Ackley, who entered Sunday's game tied for the team lead in goals.\nSophomore midfielder Brad Ring also rode the bench at the start of the game, though he saw some playing time in the middle of the game.\nAfter starting the season 4-3-2, Freitag made some changes to the lineup and started "playing players who are getting it done," he said.\n"What you've done in the past doesn't give you privilege to be on the field today," Freitag said. "Those guys know that. Some guys go in and out of form. A couple guys are out of form right now, and other guys have stepped up."\nBefore Wednesday, Dieterle started every game of his college career, except for sitting out a few games due to injury his sophomore year.\nFreitag said Ackley was ill during the week and was not able to train.\nAckley did not start against Kentucky on Wednesday, though he knocked in an overtime goal to beat the Wildcats 1-0.\nThe coach's Sunday lineup was the same as his lineup Wednesday. Freshman Ofori Sarkodie started in Dieterle's place, and fellow freshman Eric Alexander got the start at midfield. Sophomore midfielder John Mellencamp also started both games.\nFreitag's new-look Hoosiers are now 2-0.\n"It just keeps competition within the team," sophomore forward Kevin Noschang said of the lineup changes.\nNoschang hasn't started since earlier this season but came off the bench and played most of the game Sunday. \n"Everybody comes out and plays the hardest in practice and in the games, and it reflects in your performance on the field," he said. "It makes us better."\nFreitag said sophomore Chay Cain will be his permanent goalkeeper. Cain and junior Chris Munroe battled for playing time early in the season, but Munroe has not played since allowing five goals in a loss to Notre Dame.\n"It's been great for me because I'm still learning," Cain said. "I'm young. I'm learning each game ... We're just trying to find the best players that are playing the best at the right time. We sub a lot. We get a lot of different guys in there, and different guys figure out how to get the job done"
(09/27/06 3:36am)
IU versus Kentucky. Two words: Border War. \nNo, not the Ohio River -- but rather the 49th parallel. \nWhen the IU men's soccer team battles the Wildcats at 7 p.m. tonight at Bill Armstrong Stadium, it will be a border war of a different kind.\n"They've got several Canadians who are good players," IU coach Mike Freitag said of the visiting Wildcats. \nIn fact, they have four Canadian players, a British player and an Australian player.\n"We've had a pretty good rivalry with Kentucky," Freitag said, even though the Hoosiers are 18-1-1 all time against the team from Lexington. "They're a formidable opponent these days."\nThe only time the Wildcats beat the Hoosiers was in 1995 in Bloomington.\nBut Freitag watched the Wildcats, 7-1-1 on the season, play Louisville earlier this season and was impressed with their performance. \nFreitag is particularly concerned with Kentucky forward Riley O'Neill, a senior from British Columbia who plays on Canada's Under-20 national team. \n"He's dangerous with his feet," Freitag said. "He's also dangerous off the ground."\nTo stop O'Neill and the rest of the Wildcat attack, senior defender Julian Dieterle said the Hoosiers must learn to talk. \n"Communication's going to be key," he said. "Miscommunication, small things have been our Achilles heel thus far early in the season. Something so simple, it's going to get sorted out."\nThe Hoosiers enter the border battle after coming off a disappointing 2-2 tie with Michigan -- a team the Wildcats lost to 2-1 earlier this month.\nIn Sunday's match the Hoosiers were plagued by a slow start and had to climb back from a 2-0 deficit. \n"We haven't been coming out well the first 20 minutes," freshman midfielder Lee Hagedorn said. "We feel like it's just going to happen without us going out and making it happen." \nThe tie against Michigan kept IU unranked for the second consecutive week. Again, the Hoosiers did not receive a single vote.\n"Dropping out of the rankings and everything has been kind of tough on our team," sophomore goalie Chay Cain said, "but everybody realizes that Kentucky's a good team, and we have to go out and play our best Wednesday night." \nEven in a tie, the Hoosiers found a spark in senior forward Kevin Robson. Robson is tied for the team high in total points and was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week after his two-goal performance against the Wolverines. \nRobson said its time for the rest of the team to pick up the intensity.\n"If we play a full 90 minutes, we're obviously going to win," he said. "But we haven't done it yet this year. It's got to come soon cause we're running out of games here, so we need to step it up here and get some 'W's'"
(09/25/06 4:10pm)
Brian Ackley insists it was luck. \n"I'm just kind of being in the right place at the right time," said the sophomore midfielder/forward. "I'm just trying to bust my ass and get to the ball. Everybody's really helping me out.\n"I'm playing with the best players in the nation."\nHe could probably throw himself into that category. And he could bring freshman teammate Darren Yeagle along, too. \nThe pair scored seven goals in eight nonconference games this season.\n"It's been phenomenal," senior forward Kevin Robson said. "We needed some guys to score some goals for us, and they scored some timely, timely goals."\nNo more timely goals than a couple weeks ago in Dallas when the team was trying to rebound after losing two close games to two nationally ranked opponents -- Notre Dame and Southern Methodist University. The Hoosiers were trailing Tulsa University by a goal with five minutes remaining in regulation. \nThat's when Ackley knocked the ball into the top corner of the net to even the match. Eleven minutes later in overtime, Yeagle booted a ball of his own to give IU the victory.\n"Me and him, when we're up top, kind of gel well together -- feed off each other," Ackley said. \nThe pair represent more than just two of IU's most prolific goal scorers. They are part of a new breed of IU players -- a group of talented, young Hoosiers who have yet to hoist a College Cup trophy. But they are trying to get to that point, and they are trying to fill in for players who are no longer on the team. \nAckley and Yeagle are leading that charge.\n"They're both stepping up," senior midfielder John Michael Hayden said. "We lost a few guys. We lost (Brian) Plotkin, we lost (Jacob) Peterson -- those guys which last year, past years, were somewhat of our goal scorers. They're stepping up, and it's good."\nThough, Hayden admits they could be even better.\n"They're given a lot of opportunities," he said. "There are some also that I felt like they should have scored. So they should have more (goals)." \nThough Ackley and Yeagle are separated by a year of eligibility, they both were part of IU coach Mike Freitag's 2005 recruiting class. Freitag redshirted Yeagle last season to give him an extra year of eligibility. \n"I grew up with (Ackley)," Yeagle said. "Last year he was one of my close friends. I just know how he plays, and he knows how I play."\nThat cohesiveness manifested itself in the Hoosiers' final preseason game. They faced then-No. 1 University of Maryland in an exhibition match in Fort Wayne. \nTied 0-0 in the second half, Yeagle made a break down the right side of the field and passed the ball to Ackley, who delivered.\nAt that point, they knew they had something special.\n"I knew we had to take it upon ourselves to help out the team in scoring situations," Yeagle said.\nFreitag is happy with their performances. \n"Probably the biggest surprise is Brian Ackley," Freitag said. "Brian we knew was a good player last year in so limited time. When he came back (this season), we threw him up front (to forward) because of necessity, and he seemed to click. He's got a lot of good attributes to play up here. He's got good feet; he's good in the air, and he's got a little bit of larceny in him. He's always trying to poach a goal or find a way to make something happen."\nThe two make up a good one-two punch. Ackley towers over opposing defenders while Yeagle flashes past them. \n"Darren is just a very dynamic player -- a player who, if you're a defender, you better be on your toes cause if you're on your heels, that explosiveness, he'll find a way to make things happen," Freitag said.\nIt's a combination Freitag can trust for the next few years, during which Ackley and Yeagle have only one goal: a national championship.\n"That was one of the major reasons I came here -- the history," Ackley said. "The older guys and the coaches try to make us realize what it's about. I get hyped about it, just hearing them talk about it. Hopefully we get there and share the same experience"
(09/25/06 4:14am)
The Wolverines walked off the field and entered a joyous locker room. The Hoosiers kept their heads down. The game didn't end in a Michigan victory, but to the maize and blue it might as well have. \nFor the first time in team history, the IU men's soccer team did not beat Michigan. Instead, the Hoosiers tied the Wolverines 2-2 Sunday afternoon.\n"Regardless of who we play, that was unacceptable," senior defender Julian Dieterle said. "It doesn't matter who that was .... What matters is how we're playing, and right now we're not getting things done."\nMost upsetting to the Hoosiers was their slow start at the beginning of the game. \nIn the fifth minute, a Hoosier defender tackled Michigan forward Peri Marosevic in the IU penalty box, giving the Wolverines a penalty kick early in the game. \nMichigan defender Michael Holody sent the kick from 12 yards out past IU goalkeeper Chay Cain into the lower left corner of the goal to give the Wolverines an early 1-0 lead. \nThe Michigan offensive attack continued less than 15 minutes later. In the 19th minute, Marosevic played the ball up to teammate Kevin Hall, who wove between two IU defenders and sent the ball past Cain to pad the Wolverine lead to 2-0. \n"The ball was kind of just bouncing, and somehow it got through," Cain said about Hall's goal. "He kind of caught me flatfooted and snuck it in."\nIU coach Mike Freitag knows his team can't compete with slow starts.\n"You can't come out for the first 15 minutes and stand and watch and hope something's going to happen," Freitag said. "We're not good enough to give teams two goals and then try to play catch up."\nHis team was able to catch up, though. It just took time. \nIn the 34th minute, the Hoosiers were given a penalty kick of their own when IU forward Darren Yeagle was tackled in Michigan's penalty box. Hoosier forward Kevin Robson sent his penalty kick in nearly the same location Holody sent his. He got the same result, putting the Hoosiers on the board at 2-1.\nWith little more than 20 minutes remaining in the game, Robson found the net again with a blast from 30 yards out into the upper right corner of the net. \nThe game went into overtime, and both the Hoosier and Wolverine offensive attacks had their chances. Each team had three shots on goal between the two overtime periods. Michigan and IU had three shots on goal in regulation combined. In the future, Freitag hopes the Hoosiers won't have to exert any effort in overtime.\n"We shouldn't have to play 110 minutes; we should play 90 minutes and get it over with," Freitag said. \nDieterle, Cain and Robson agree the key to more Hoosier wins is playing with intensity for all 90 minutes. With a two-goal lead, the Michigan defense was able to keep five men stationed at the 18-yard line to try to prevent an IU goal. \n"If you come out like we did and give two early goals, you're definitely going to give them a chance to sit back like they did," Robson said. "Luckily we got back in the game and made a couple good goals, but we can't dig ourselves holes like that because teams are going to do that against us because they're going to want to walk out of here with at least a tie"
(09/21/06 3:10pm)
When they arrive back in Bloomington, members of the IU men's soccer team might have a little more swagger in their step. Their confidence is back.\nThe Hoosiers blanked the No. 21 Akron Zips 2-0 Wednesday night, giving IU its first win against a ranked opponent since it beat then-No. 8 Creighton University in August.\n"The guys should have never doubted themselves," IU coach Mike Freitag said. "We played tough against some quality opponents."\nThe cream and crimson entered Akron having lost three of its last four games and dropped out of the national rankings.\nFreitag said he was impressed with the way his team played.\n"Besides the goals, I thought we played a focused game," Freitag said. "Yeah, you win 2-0 and you should be proud of your offense. What I'm proud of more is the shutout."\nThe win was IU's first victory by more than a one-goal margin, and it came in front of a raucous Akron crowd at Lee Jackson Field. The Zips offered discounted ticket prices in an attempt to "Pack the Jack" for the game against the Hoosiers.\n"I love playing in front of a lot of people," junior defender Greg Stevning said. "It gets me fired up."\nThe Hoosiers quieted the crowd early. In the 18th minute, sophomore midfielder Brad Ring took a pass from freshman Eric Alexander, and Ring sent the ball into the upper-right corner of the net to give the Hoosiers a 1-0 lead.\n"I was pretty lucky," Ring said. "I was just in the right place at the right time."\nLucky or not, the early goal settled a team that needed a victory to enter Big Ten play with a winning record.\n"I think everybody relaxed once we got that first goal," Stevning said.\nStevning said the Hoosiers dominated play from that point. \nIn the 75th minute, less than a minute after he subbed back in the game, freshman forward Darren Yeagle stole the ball from an Akron defender and netted his fourth goal of the season and the Hoosiers' second of the night.\nThe win against Akron was the first game the Hoosiers played against former IU player and assistant coach Caleb Porter, who is in his first year as head coach for the Zips.\n"We had a lot of motivation, playing against our former coach," Stevning said.\nRing said he just hopes the team can build on the momentum.\n"We're always confident," Ring said. "We always think we can play with any team in the country. We just weren't playing up to our potential (in previous games). Hopefully this is a turning point"
(09/21/06 4:11am)
The IU Athletics Department ended last year with a smaller budget deficit than predicted, but the department is still $7.2 million in debt, said Kathleen McNeely, IU's executive director of Financial Management Services. \nBefore the department presented its $55 million facility upgrades plan Wednesday, McNeely updated the board of trustees on the financial progress the athletics department has made since it introduced its five-year financial plan last year. \nThe department budgeted for a $1.1 million dollar loss last year but ended the year only $887,000 in the red. \n"Athletics actually had, what I would consider, a very, very good year financially," McNeely said.\nIn 2004 the athletics department reported a $2.7 million operating budget deficit. In 2005 it reported a $1.8 million deficit.\n"I think this is very good news, and it exceeds our expectations in the context of the five-year plan which you approved," IU President Adam Herbert told the trustees. \nIncreased football revenue helped bolster the department's numbers, McNeely said. The department made $968,000 more than budgeted in football sales, and it negotiated $401,000 in payments for ticket sales at away games. \nMcNeely also said the department's budget already accounted for former IU basketball coach Mike Davis' contract buyout, estimated at more than $800,000.\nThis is the last year the department will pay former IU football coach Gerry DiNardo, who is still owed $230,000, said Kevin Clark, associate athletics director of business and finance.\nThough the department's total debt is $9 million, $1.8 million of that belongs to the IU golf course, and McNeely said the University considers the athletics department and the golf course two separate entities. \nThe athletics department only borrows money from the University, something trustee Patrick Shoulders wanted to clarify for those in attendance. \n"We're talking -- not owing a bank -- we're talking about owing ourselves," Shoulders said. "It's like taking money out of the right pocket and putting it back over in the left."\nLast year, Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan presented the department's five-year budget to the trustees. The budget eliminated a $30 mandatory student athletics fee but reallocated 500 student seats for men's basketball games to alumni and raised student basketball ticket prices by $5. Last year the athletics department projected $1,016,200 in income from the athletics fee. Without the fee, but including the seat reallocation and ticket price increase, the department expects to make $1,280,400 in revenue. \nThe budget calls for an elimination of a yearly deficit by 2008. The budget did not include any plan to repay the debt the department has already accumulated. \n"President Herbert gave me a charge," Greenspan said. "The charge was explicit: 'Build a financially viable, gender-equitable athletic department on which student-athletes excel academically and athletically.' I have taken this charge seriously and reflect on it daily."\nJudith Palmer, IU vice president and chief financial officer, said the trustees would receive a full financial report on the athletics department during Thursday's meeting.
(09/20/06 4:12am)
Call it a freefall. \nThe IU men's soccer team plummeted from No. 9 to unranked in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll released Tuesday.\nThe Hoosiers didn't receive a single vote in the poll.\nHeading into the University of Akron tonight to face the No. 21 Zips, IU coach Mike Freitag is undeterred.\n"We've had a tough schedule, lost to some tough teams," Freitag said. "But I also felt very comfortable we could beat any of those teams. \n"We just have to work some things out. (We're) still not firing on all cylinders. It takes awhile, especially when you lose six starters from last year. We're a brand new team, and we got to find a way to play that fits us best, and we haven't found that yet."\nThe cream and crimson hope to recover from a disappointing weekend loss to Saint Louis University when they travel Akron tonight for what sophomore midfielder Brad Ring calls a "must-win" game. \nJunior defender Charley Traylor said the team is not dwelling on Friday's 1-0 loss to the Billikens.\n"The loss hurts, but at the same time we have to forget about it and start playing for the next game because there's nothing we can do about it at this point," he said.\nBut to get that victory, the Hoosiers must defeat one of their own. Caleb Porter -- who played for IU from 1993 to 1997 and was an assistant coach from 2000 to 2005 -- accepted a head coaching job at Akron this year. \n"It's going to raise the significance a little bit," Traylor said. "I think Caleb's going to have his guys ready to play us because we have history together."\nHistory or not, the players say this is a game they need to preserve their season. \n"If we have a hard time getting riled up for that game, then something's wrong with us," Ring said.\nThe Hoosiers have dropped three of the last four games, dating back to their overtime loss at home to Notre Dame Sept. 3.\nWith a loss, IU would drop below a .500 winning percentage.\n"It's not going to get any easier," Freitag said. "Akron is a very good team. ... The important part of this (IU) team is to see how we react mentally. You can throw it in or you can step up to the plate and get after it, and I think this team will step up to the play and get after it."\nTonight's game is the final game before the Big Ten season starts. The Hoosiers face Michigan Sunday at Bill Armstrong Stadium, heightening the importance to enter conference play with a winning record by beating Akron.\n"We have to get it done, no matter what," Ring said. "We have to get a 'W' when we go there"
(09/18/06 3:29am)
ST. LOUIS -- A dejected Brad Ring kept his head down as he answered questions in the shadows of Robert R. Hermann Stadium Friday night. The sophomore midfielder stood outside the IU men's soccer team's locker room, lamenting the team's third loss in four games.\n"We're just playing terrible," Ring said. "There's no ifs, ands or buts about it. We're playing bad."\nThe team got off to a slow start in the first half Friday and fell behind Saint Louis University 1-0 heading into the locker room. Ring said IU coach Mike Freitag, "let into us a little bit, like he should." \n"We were playing horrible," Ring said. "We were playing absolutely horrible, and he let us know it at half time. And we came out, played a little bit better, but not really. We're still laying back, not going after it. He has the right to be mad at us. He should be yelling at us still right now. I don't know why we're out here; he should be yelling at us still."\nFriday's loss brings the season total to three, which ties last year's total for all season. \n"We've been playing scared lately," freshman midfielder Eric Alexander said. "We've been sitting on our heels and haven't really been going at teams like we should."\nFreitag said he hopes his team will pick up the intensity but is not very concerned with his team's win-loss record. \n"I can remember the 2003 season," he said about his last year as assistant coach. "Halfway through the season we had a losing record ... We went on to win a national championship that year."\nThat team entered Big Ten play with a 2-3-4 record. This team is currently 3-3-1 with one game to play before the Big Ten season starts. \nTo bounce back, Ring said it will just "come to us."\n"When we play good, on top of our game, I know we can play with anybody in the country," he said. "I'm sure of that; everyone's sure of that; we all know that."\nMembers of the team say they hope it will come to them Wednesday at the University of Akron in Ohio.\n"This isn't the first time we've been here," Alexander said. "We'll get over these bumps.\n"We'll rebound against Akron," he said. "Hopefully"
(09/13/06 4:32am)
Leaders of the IU Student Foundation defended a controversial Little 500 rule change to riders during four meetings held Monday and Tuesday. \nMatthew Ewing, assistant director of IUSF, told Little 500 riders that the "Student Coaching Initiative," which bars nonstudent coaches from the pits on race day, will be implemented this year. A large group of riders are circulating a petition to deliver to IUSF that asks for a re-evaluation of the rule. \n"I think it's great the riders are coming together," Ewing said after one of Tuesday's meetings. "As far as whether it's going to change anything, it's not going to happen."\nIUSF said the rule will likely stand for several years.\n"This is definitely something that's a five-year plan," said IUSF Director Jenny Bruffey.\nThe initiative is something IUSF has considered for several years, but Jonathan Purvis, assistant to the IU Foundation president, said now is the right time to enact it. \n"There are two types of people: those who pull off the band-aid little by little or those who pull it off all at once," Purvis said. "I'm the type who pulls it off all at once."\nPurvis and the other IUSF leaders told riders the rule change fits in with the foundation's mission and provides more leadership opportunities to students. They said they hope teams will embrace their student coaches, and Purvis said the teams that will be the most successful will be the ones who embrace the rule. \nStill, the IUSF leaders faced questions and criticisms from Little 500 riders. Men's and women's greek teams met with IUSF Monday night and men's and women's independent and residence hall teams met Tuesday night. \nMany riders criticized IUSF for not including riders in the discussion for the initiative. \n"To tell you the truth, I really like the initiative, but I don't like the way it was implemented," Briscoe rider Justin Boren said. He added he is less inclined to donate to IUSF and the IU Foundation after graduation due to the lack of student input in the rule. \nEwing said if IUSF could begin discussions again, he would like for them to include student opinion. \n"Do I think it would change it? No," Ewing said.\nHe told riders that IUSF has the responsibility to look out for the success of the race. \n"Nobody owns this race," Ewing said. "This race is much bigger than me, and it's much bigger than you. It is our job to set the framework, and I think in this framework you are given a lot of freedom."\nThat didn't ease riders' \nconcerns. \n"Essentially, you said it's your responsibility to structure (the race), but who are you responsible to?" Team Major Taylor rider Alfonso Lerma said. \nRiders also questioned the timing of the rule change. IU Foundation President and CEO Curt Simic sent a letter to the non-student coaches in May after the completion of IU's spring semester.\nIUSF hopes the non-student coaches can help mentor the new student coaches by creating the Alumni Coaching Advisory Board. The board's first meeting is October 12.
(09/11/06 3:22am)
Riding on the team bus back from the Indianapolis International Airport, Kevin Robson said his weekend was "a little bittersweet." \nThe senior forward had a lot to be happy about. He had two assists in IU's Saturday victory against the University of Tulsa and, for his efforts, was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Mi Cocina Classic in Dallas. \nHowever, the IU men's soccer team didn't earn the two wins it wanted.\nThe No. 10 Hoosiers lost to the No. 3 Southern Methodist University 1-0 Friday night but rebounded to beat Tulsa 2-1 in overtime Saturday.\n"I thought it was a weekend we didn't play as well as we can," IU coach Mike Freitag said.\nIU lost its second consecutive game to a ranked opponent when it fell to SMU Friday night. The Hoosiers and the hosting Mustangs played a statistically even match. Each team took 12 shots, though IU had three shots on goal, compared to SMU's two. \nIn the 76th minute, one of SMU's two shots-on-goal found its way past IU sophomore goalkeeper Chay Cain and into the net to give the Mustangs a 1-0 victory. \nNeither team had a shot on goal in the first half. \n"In the game against SMU, I thought we could have won," Freitag said. "Maybe a tie would have been the best result, but we came up short ... SMU will most likely be No. 1 this week, but I feel very comfortable and confident, and I'd like to play them again."\nHis players weren't as comfortable with their loss to SMU. After the game, team captains Josh Tudela and Julian Dieterle called a players' meeting. \n"We were pretty upset," freshman Darren Yeagle said. "But we came together after the game and decided we needed to get things back on track."\nIn the second game of the Classic, the Hoosiers found themselves down 1-0 yet again. \nWith five minutes left in play against Tulsa, Robson, running up the right side of the field, pushed the ball up to midfielder Brian Ackley who scored the equalizing goal.\nIn overtime, Robson passed the ball to Yeagle, and Tulsa goalkeeper Dominic Cervi crept out of the goal to intercept the ball. Cervi missed the ball, leaving nothing between Yeagle, the ball and victory. \n"I just tried to take it upon myself to make something happen," Robson said. "We needed that win pretty badly."\nRobson, who played on the 2002 and 2003 national championship squads, said he is happy with the direction of the team.\n"I think this team has the capabilities of going really far," he said. "The chemistry of this team reminds me of the team of 2003."\nFreitag knows there's more to college soccer than chemistry, though.\n"There's parity in college soccer," he said. "You have to show up on the day. If you don't show up on the day, anybody can beat anybody."\nThe Hoosiers travel Friday to St. Louis to take on No. 18 St. Louis University. The Billikens won the Adidas/IU Credit Union Classic in Bloomington last weekend.
(09/08/06 2:53am)
Watching the game tape from Sunday's overtime loss to in-state rival Notre Dame, IU men's soccer coach Mike Freitag noticed a couple things about his team's play.\nFirst, the Hoosiers had a hard time stopping Notre Dame forward Joe Lapira. \nSecond, his boys were tired. \n"We had some heavy-legged backs, some tired backs that came against the Tasmanian devil (Lapira)," Freitag said.\nHis defense allowed five goals for the Irish -- the most in IU team history. IU played the University of Connecticut Friday night and then the Irish Sunday, leaving many players tired.\n"Both teams weren't at their best on Sunday, but that's what you have to deal with," Freitag said. "This week's going to be even worse. You play Friday and Saturday nights, so even less time to recover."\nThe No. 10 Hoosiers face No. 3 Southern Methodist University Friday night in Dallas and take the field again Saturday to battle Tulsa University.\nFreitag promises his team will not have a defensive letdown. \n"Everybody knows that's not going to happen again," he said. \nTo make sure of it, a variety of players will see game action. \n"This is going to be a team," Freitag said. "This year, the team is going to be important. A lot of players are going to be important. Fresh legs are going to have to come in."\nHis players know that as well. \n"The thing about this team as opposed to some of the IU teams is we're really deep and that really helps us on the field," sophomore forward Kevin Noschang said. "We got guys that can come in and can do the job if other guys get tired. Substitutions this weekend are going to be very big for us if we want to win both games."\nFreshman defender/midfielder Kevin Alston said the defense has to improve its communication.\n"It looked like sometimes people got caught one-on-one," Alston said. "It seemed like we should help them out more."\nAfter Sunday's loss, Freitag said he didn't believe any adjustments needed to be made to his defense. IU keeps three defenders in the backfield while most college teams play four. It's a strategy the Hoosiers have used to win seven national championships. \nThis week, he reinforced his confidence in his defense. \n"The way we're playing, if we cut out a few mistakes, we'll be fine," Freitag said. \nHe also expressed his confidence in junior goalie Chris Munroe, who was in goal during the loss to the Irish. Munroe and sophomore Chay Cain have each played two full games this season. Freitag said he did not know which goalie would start the game against SMU.
(09/04/06 4:09am)
The IU men's soccer team gave up the most goals in a single game in the team's 33-year history Sunday, and junior goalkeeper Chris Munroe took all the blame.\n"I let the guys down," he said after IU's 5-4 Sunday to the University of Notre Dame. "There were a couple of good goals, couple of team defensive breakdowns, but at the end of the day, it's my responsibility to keep the ball out of the net, and I didn't do a good job."\nSenior defenseman Julian Dieterle said defensive play was an anomaly. \n"I've never given up five goals," Dieterle said. "Never. It's just one of those days. What are you going to do?\n"It won't happen again, though."\nDieterle said the blame belongs to the entire team, not just Munroe.\nThe No. 12 Hoosiers' Sunday loss to the No. 15 Irish was the second "disappointing" performance the players said they had this weekend during the Adidas/IU Credit Union Soccer Classic. IU tied the University of Connecticut 1-1 Friday night. \nThe Hoosier's loss to the Irish was a gut-wrenching, back-and-forth battle that featured two sets of consecutive goals that came within 20 seconds of each other.\n"I had never been in a game like that before," IU coach Mike Freitag said. "Many gray hairs popped out during it."\nIU outshot Notre Dame 19-12.\nThe Hoosiers had difficulties recovering after attacking offensively, which is something Freitag said is typically a strength of his team.\n"We're usually pretty good with the transition," Dieterle said. "But for whatever reason we were maybe a little slow. It's something we'll address this week, and we'll get better, I promise."\nTheir inability to recover on the defensive end resulted in four unassisted goals by the Irish -- a product of breakaways.\nThe Hoosiers were facing near defeat at the end of regulation when freshman forward/midfielder Darren Yeagle was tackled in Notre Dame's penalty box, giving IU a penalty kick with 11.7 seconds left. Senior midfielder John Michael Hayden kicked the ball past 6-foot-6 Irish goalkeeper Chris Cahill to tie the game 4-4. Hayden said he thought the momentum would carry IU to victory in overtime were it not for the one whom Freitag called "the kid."\nThe Hoosiers were torched all day by Irish forward Joe Lapira. \n"Everyone has their game," said Lapira, who netted four of the Irish's five goals, including the game-winner in overtime. "I guess today was mine. I was pretty lucky. We had plenty of opportunities today, and I was fortunate to finish mine."\nIn the 97th minute, Lapira, running down the left side of the field, tried to send a pass to a teammate and kicked the ball off the side of his foot. Lapira's pass didn't find his Irish teammate, but it did find the back of the net to end the game.\nLapira said "it wasn't a shot." Freitag said it was "the luck of the Irish."\n"We got a good team; today was just the Irish's day," Freitag said. "They just outplayed us today. I feel comfortable (that) if we play them again, it would be a different result."\nOn Friday, Yeagle said he was disappointed his team couldn't put away the Huskies.\n"We dominated the game," he said. "They're a good team. I'll give them credit. But we should have come out with the victory."\nIU outshot the Huskies 17-3 and got out to an early lead.\nYeagle scored the lone goal of the first half. At 7:33 remaining and with one Connecticut defender far to his right, Yeagle juked past diving Husky goalkeeper Matt Sangeloty and sent the ball high into the right corner of the goal. \nBut Connecticut tied it up late in the second half. With 16 minutes remaining in regulation, Husky midfielder Akeem Priestley recovered a rebound in front of the IU goal and booted the ball to the top of the net. On his way back to midfield, Priestley turned toward the IU fans with his finger over his mouth to hush the rowdy home crowd. \nIU made several attacks at the Husky goal at the end of the game but was never able to net the ball.
(09/03/06 1:34am)
Lying on the ground, Chay Cain was overcome by a "helpless" feeling. \nWith the Hoosiers up 1-0 and 16 minutes remaining in the game, Hoosier goalkeeper Cain made a save to preserve IU's lead. But the ball bounced back in front of the Hoosier goal with a University of Connecticut player ready to unload. \n"At that point you're kind of just stranded," Cain said after the game. "You hope for the best, and unfortunately they just got one."\nHusky midfielder Akeem Priestley sent one to the back of IU's net. \nThat one was the only for the Huskies, but it did enough damage to turn what Cain called the "best game of the season we've played this far" into what IU Coach Mike Freitag called a "disappointment."\nThe No. 12 IU men's soccer team and No. 2 Connecticut played to a 1-1 tie in the first round of the adidas/IU Credit Union Soccer Classic. \n"We're all a little disappointed because we like to win here," Cain said. "But we played really well, and that's the thing we can take out of this -- it's the best performance we've put together all season."\nThe Hoosiers outshot the Huskies 17-3.\nFreshman midfielder Darren Yeagle said it was a game the Hoosiers should have won "by far."\n"We dominated the game," Yeagle said. "They're a good team. I'll give them credit. But we should have come out with the victory."\nThe Hoosiers netted the first goal of the game late in the first half. \nAt 7:33 remaining in the half and with one Connecticut defender far to his right, freshman Yeagle juked past diving Husky goalkeeper Matt Sangeloty and booted the ball high into the right corner of the goal.\nEven with the lead, the Hoosiers played most of the second half on the offensive, and most of the action was in the Huskies defensive end. \nBut Husky forward O'Brian White made a break down the right side of the field -- chased only by Hoosier defender Charley Traylor. Cain made the first save, but no Hoosier defender was able to clear the ball. Priestley then sent the ball between the posts.\n"It was a little bit of a breakdown that we didn't do a good job of cleaning up," Freitag said. \nIU went back on the attack for the rest of regulation and into the overtime periods. The Hoosiers made five shots in the two overtime periods, including a low-ball by midfielder Josh Tudela that clanked off the right post but did not find the net. \n"It's unlucky," Tudela said. "I thought for sure it was going in, but it came out."\nThe Hoosiers will have a chance at redemption 2 p.m. Sunday when they battle No. 15 University of Notre Dame. The Irish knocked the Hoosiers out of the NCAA tournament last year, and IU has a chip on their shoulder from Friday's tie. \nNotre Dame tied Saint Louis University 0-0 prior to the Hoosiers game, which gives IU a chance to still win the Classic. \n"It's our tournament," Cain said. "We want to win our own tournament."
(09/02/06 3:47am)
The IU men's soccer team tied the University of Connecticut 1-1 in the first round of the adidas/IU Credit Union Soccer Classic. \nThe Hoosiers outshot the Huskies 17-3 and got out to an early lead. \nHoosiers freshman midfielder Darren Yeagle scored the lone goal of the first half. At 7:33 remaining and with one Connecticut defender far to his right, Yeagle juked past diving Husky goalkeeper Matt Sangeloty and sent the ball high into the right corner of the goal. \nBut Connecticut tied it up late in the second half. With 16 minutes remaining in regulation, Husky midfielder Akeem Priestley recovered a rebound in front of the IU goal and knocked the ball to the top of the net. On his way back to midfield, Priestley turned toward the IU fans with his finger over his mouth to hush the rowdy home crowd. \nIU made several attacks at the Husky goal at the end of the game but was never able to net the ball.
(08/30/06 5:18am)
A Monroe County Circuit Court ruling Monday upheld IU's decision to seal a report that could give clues to the firing of former basketball coach Bob Knight.\nThe Indianapolis Star filed a lawsuit in October 2000 under Indiana's Access to Public Records Act, seeking release of a report conducted by two lawyers, who were also University trustees, investigating Knight's conduct. \nSpecial Judge Jane Spencer Craney ruled IU did not violate the act because the report is part of the attorney-client confidentiality agreement, the Associated Press reported. \n"I am gratified that the University was found to be correct in their interpretation of the law with respect to the communications we had accumulated during the course of the investigation," said Fred Eichhorn, one of the former trustees who conducted the report.\nFormer IU President Myles Brand hired Eichhorn and former trustee John Walda to investigate claims former basketball player Neil Reed made, Eichhorn said. \nNeither of the trustees were paid for their work, "but that does not determine the lawyer-client relationship," Eichhorn said. "It could be a lawyer-client relationship without compensation."\nEichhorn said he did "not really" believe there was a conflict of interest in investigating IU while at the same time serving as trustee. He added it would not have been wiser for the University to hire other counsel.\nLarry MacIntyre, director of IU media relations, said University Counsel Dorothy Frapwell was pleased with the decision, though Frapwell said she could not comment on the ruling because she has not read it.\n"From day one, we believed (the report) was privileged and not subject to release," MacIntyre said. \nIn November 2001, Craney ruled in IU's favor because state code only requires "final personnel disciplinary action" become public, not the investigation process. Craney is a Morgan County judge who presided over the case because all Monroe County judges recused themselves, according to an August 2005 Indiana Daily Student report. \nAfter appeal to the Indiana Court of Appeals, the case was sent back to Craney to determine whether Eichhorn and Walda were acting as University representatives.\nIn a 1997 television interview, Reed said Knight choked him -- an allegation which led to a "zero tolerance" policy for the former coach. Knight was then fired in May 2000.\nIndianapolis Star Managing Editor Pam Fine said the paper's Editor and Vice President Dennis Ryerson will review the case when he returns from vacation Monday. \nIn a February 2005 article, Ryerson told the Indiana Daily Student that it is easy for public institutions to keep information from the public. \nMacIntyre said the University does not agree that this information is something that has to be open to the public.\n"It is our policy to comply with the Public Records Act," he said. "If it's something the law requires the government to publish, we do. We don't drag our heels; we comply with the law, always"
(08/29/06 1:20pm)
The IU athletics department will not charge students admission to certain home sporting events, though last fall IU trustees approved a measure that said it would.\nThe policy reversal affects regular season home contests for men's and women's soccer, volleyball and wrestling, which would have cost students $5 for admission. Previously, those sports were free with a student ID.\nAlso, Pete Rhoda, IU director of athletic media relations, said admission to women's basketball games will be free to students, though they were charged admission most games last year.\n"We think it's great news," said Andrew Lauck, IU Student Association vice president. "It's great news for us, and it's great news for the students."\nIUSA and members of the athletics department held several meetings in the past six months and came to an agreement to eliminate some admission costs this summer.\n"We were concerned with the ability to solicit student involvement in athletics," Lauck said. "If price goes up, attendance obviously would go down. That's something we didn't want the athletics department to deal with and something we didn't want students to deal with."\nOne of the teams that was affected -- the IU men's soccer team -- boasts one of the highest soccer attendance records in the country. In 2005, the team averaged 3,112 fans per match -- second only to the University of New Mexico for highest attendance average in the country and second highest average of any NCAA soccer program ever.\nRhoda said attending free sporting events is a benefit of going to IU.\n"There are so many great sports programs here," Rhoda said. "(Students are) such a great part of our football and basketball programs, men's and women's, and they're such a great part of our soccer atmosphere, volleyball, swimming and all our other sports."\nIn September 2005, IU Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan presented a budget to the IU trustees that included a series of changes in an effort to end the athletics department's eight-year deficit streak. The budget, approved in November, called for a balanced budget within two years.\nThough it eliminated a mandatory $30 athletics fee for students, the budget reduced the number of student seats at basketball games and increased those ticket prices from $11 to $15 per game -- measures that still stand.\nThe department's decision to continue free student admission was focused more on student involvement than finances, "which I think reflects the impact the students have on the department," Rhoda said. "The main emphasis is the value and the importance of having all the students at our sporting events." \nLauck said IUSA does not have to cover the cost difference. \nAfter the Sept. 16, 2005, trustees meeting where the plan was presented, IU President Adam Herbert told the Indiana Daily Student he was not sure how students would react to the new plan. \n"I'm surprised because this will make it harder to get tickets to students with lower incomes," Herbert said in September 2005.\nBefore the budget's approval, IUSA released a survey reporting there was little student support for the changes the department made.\nIUSA will continue its "pleasant and professional" meetings with the athletics department, Lauck said. \n"It's an ongoing process, but this was the first step," he said. "This was a great sign from the athletics department"
(08/25/06 4:08am)
Preseason rankings don't bother the IU men's soccer team.\nThough they were ranked No. 1 in the nation at the start of three of the last five seasons, the Hoosiers open their season tonight ranked No. 12.\nSenior midfielder Josh Tudela couldn't care less. \n"Going into the season we don't really look much at the rankings," Tudela said. "As long as we have the No. 1 ranking at the end of the season, that's all that matters."\nIU coach Mike Freitag thinks it's too early to make ranking judgments.\n"I'm flattered we are where we are because we're a brand new team," he said.\nFriday the Hoosiers start their quest for an eighth NCAA Championship against No. 8 Creighton University at the Mike Bertielli Memorial Tournament in South Bend. \nLast year, the Bluejays advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament, and in exhibition this year they knocked off No. 9 University of Akron and tied No. 5 Clemson University. Last time the two teams met, the Bluejays knocked the Hoosiers out of the NCAA Tournament with a 2-1 win in 2000.\n"It's going to be a stiff challenge," Freitag said. "This will show us exactly where were at this stage."\nSenior back Julian Dieterle is confident in the team.\n"If we come out and play to our potential, we can beat any team in the country," Dieterle said. "We're all very confident."\nIU lost six players from last season to graduation and the pros, and Freitag recruited a slew of talented yet inexperienced freshmen.\n"All these guys can play," Freitag said. "Still, there's nothing that beats experience -- being in the trenches of the college game, being in the tough matches. But I do have all the confidence in the world in my guys."\nTudela said he thinks the younger players provide a spark. \n"This year ... everyone's willing to work for each other," Tudela said. "These guys, they don't know what it's like to win a championship, so they're willing to put out that extra effort to win one."\nTudela enters the year with accolades. He was included on the Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy Watch List, which is compiled by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, for top Division I soccer player. \n"It's a great honor to be named as one of the top players in the nation," Tudela said.\nFreitag said he will start junior Chris Munroe in goal against Creighton instead of sophomore Chay Cain, a move that gives the Hoosiers a little more experience. The two battled for playing time last season and this preseason, though Munroe was the starter last season and started both preseason matches.\nThe Hoosiers begin their season 5 p.m. Friday against Creighton and will also play the University of Alabama-Birmingham Sunday morning. Both games are in South Bend.