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(02/09/12 5:01am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Two important anniversaries of Little 500 events — the 25th racing of the women’s Little 500 and the 10th running of the Little Fifty — will take place this spring. But the commemorative celebrations will also come with significant schedule changes. Last year, the Little Fifty took place on a Thursday night, the day before the women’s Little 500 bicycle race, which began at 4 p.m. Friday. This year, both events will take place at new times, the IU Student Foundation announced.“The decision was made in order to help maximize the number of alumni returning for the event while also creating a spectacle to highlight this 25-year milestone,” Assistant Director of the Little 500 races Jordan Bailey said in a press release.Little Fifty will now take place 5 p.m. Sunday, April 15, the weekend before the men’s and women’s Little 500 races. The green flag for the women’s Little 500 will now start the race at 7 p.m. April 20.Senior Katie Reed, who rides for Alpha Gamma Delta and is a member of the Riders Council, said changing the time could help mark the occasion as something different and help bring in more alumni. “By moving it under the lights, we will make the race more special for fans and alumni,” Reed said.Amy Dickman, a rider for Kappa Alpha Theta, agreed, saying it’s a great move for the Little 500 women’s race as a whole.“I think it adds a new element of excitement,” she said. Sophomore Kelsey Tharnstrom, a rider for Alpha Chi Omega, said she disagrees.“I know they want to do it for the special 25th running, but I was little taken back by it,” Tharnstrom said. “Me and a lot of riders were not necessarily happy because it’s going to make preparing for the race a lot harder mentally and physically because we’re going to be awake so long before the race.” It’s going to alter sleeping, eating and warm-up patterns, she said. “It’s going to change everything completely,” Tharnstrom said. “It’s going to be colder. For me and my teammates, there’s a lot of negatives to it. For the riders, it’s overall a pretty poor decision.”Senior Susan Laurie, a rider for the defending champion Teter Squad, said she isn’t worried about the change in time.“A lot of people are pretty hesitant about it,” Laurie said. “But everyone is going to be under the same conditions, so it might be fun.”Bailey said the Little Fifty race was moved to Sunday to attract as many people in the stands as possible to watch the runners perform.Bailey said IUSF collaborated with the Little Fifty Runner’s Council, which is comprised of 10 runners from various teams. He said the Runner’s Council provides a participant’s viewpoint, and the move was one of the suggestions.The race will be a lead-in to the week of Little 500.“I was excited about it,” IU Run Club President Michael Nussa said. “I’m also on the committee that helps with Little Fifty. When we talked about it, we felt it would help increase interest in the race. We’re not as big as Little 5. With it on Thursday night, it always interfered with GLOWfest and a lot of other concerts. We felt that moving it to Sunday, kicking off the week, it’d be a great way to get more people out and a greater interest between runners and spectators.”While Little Fifty won’t interfere with any concerts this year, the women’s Little 500 starts two hours before Sublime with Rome, the Union Board concert at Assembly Hall, kicks off.“I know it is conflicting with the concert they’re having at 9, which is kinda confusing,” Laurie said.Senior Erica Young, who is running on Alpha Phi Omega’s Little Fifty team this year, said while it’s not the worst thing that could happen, she is not a fan of the time change.“It doesn’t feel as important,” Young said. “I feel like it’s been pushed to the back corner of Little 5.” — Sean Blue and Steph Langan contributed to this report
(01/11/12 5:18am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The 2011 Indiana Hoosiers baseball team lost eight players from last season. Two were selected in June’s 2011 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.Outfielder Alex Dickerson was selected in the third round by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He currently plays for the State College Spikes, the Short Season-A affiliate of the Pirates.Starting pitcher Blake Monar was selected in the 12th round by the Washington Nationals. The New York Yankees selected Monar in the 26th round in 2008 after he finished third in the voting for Mr. Indiana Baseball for South Spencer High School in Rockport, Ind. He chose to attend IU instead of going straight to the MLB. Monar currently plays for the Gulf Coast League Nationals, a Rookie League team.Dickerson, a Poway, Calif., native, led the Hoosiers in several offensive categories: nine home runs, 49 runs batted in and 116 total bases. His line of .367/.440/.540 paced the team in each category.The 2011 team also saw the graduation of outfielders T.C. Knipp and Brian Lambert, first baseman Jerrud Sabourin, catchers Wes Wilson and Dylan Swift and pitcher Matt Carr.Monar14 appearancesA 6-3 recordA 3.52 ERA in 79 1/3 IPStruck out 61 batters and allowed 34 walksOpponents hit .286Knipp Started 39 of 53 games. .250/.382/.355 in 152 at-bats Three triples, 10 doubles and 22 RBIs .273 Batting average on balls in play (BABiP) Lambert Started 11 of 26 games .211/.333/.237 in 38 at-batsA double and three RBI.242 BABiPSabourin Started 55 of 55 games.287/.357/.363 in 223 ABs.309 BABiPWilson Started 51 of 53 games.282/.319/.441 in 213 ABsSeven home runs, 13 doubles and 30 RBIs.296 BABiPSwift Started seven of 16 games .120/.267/.160Six RBIs on three hits.136 BABiP Carr 24 appearances, all in reliefA 2-2 recordA 4.01 ERA in 42 2/3 IPStruck out 39 batters and allowed 19 walksOpponents hit .238Note: All statistics through May 21, 2011
(11/08/11 4:34am)
Five of the six IU women's soccer team discuss their time in an IU jersey.
(11/08/11 4:29am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As the youngest team in the Big Ten, the IU women’s soccer team posted a 2-3 record in Big Ten play through Oct. 2. A six-game losing streak concluded its season and denied an opportunity for the team’s six seniors to play in a postseason match.Through those first five conference matches, IU was outscored by opponents 7-4. Throw out, for a second, the 4-1 loss against Illinois on Sept. 30, a loss that IU Coach Mick Lyon deemed an “anomaly.” The cumulative score would have been 3-3.During the six-game losing streak, IU was outscored 21-4.To begin the season, Lyon and his staff implemented a new formation, as he hoped to start fresh with his young team.The first two conference losses against Michigan and Iowa were of the 1-0 variety.“Every loss hurts,” said freshman midfielder Abby Smith after the Sept. 23 loss against Iowa. “A 1-0 loss is positive. It’s only one goal. We could’ve come back from that.”Senior midfielder Devon Beach said the Hoosiers were doing everything they could, which is why they tried something new during practice that Saturday, Sept. 24.“Playing kickball was a lot of fun,” she said. “It calmed us down and shows from the coaches that they trust us. They know that we can do well. There’s nothing we can do other than put the ball in the net to change.”The Hoosiers earned their first Big Ten win against Nebraska the following day.The Hoosiers missed an opportunity to even their conference record at 2-2 in Champaign, Ill., losing 4-1 to the Fighting Illini. Lyon said his team was still getting over the loss to Illinois in the first half against Northwestern. Senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell kept the Wildcats off the board, making three “world-class” saves.“Campbell came up huge on a couple of breakaways,” Lyon said in an IU Athletics press release. “She was definitely the player of the game for us today.”Sophomore midfielder Lisa Nouanesengsy scored her fifth goal of the season in the 71st minute of the game to give IU its second conference win.Lyon said after the Penn State match — a 3-0 IU loss — Oct. 9, his team had progressed significantly.“This is what we’re struggling with right now — a little bit of self-belief,” he said. “Our self-belief is far, far ahead of what it was last year. That puts us in positions as we were at halftime. We’re still in the game. We’ve given up somewhat of an easy goal. We’re certainly within the game.”After an 8-2 “debacle” in West Lafayette, Ind., IU returned home for one final match.The 2-1 loss to Michigan State on Senior Day was the most heartbreaking, as the Spartans scored on a free kick with two seconds remaining to tie the match and then scored the game-winner in the 94th minute.Campbell called the loss “devastating.”Saves recorded by Wisconsin goalkeeper Michele Dalton prevented the Hoosiers from scoring any points in Madison, Wis., as the Hoosiers fell to the Badgers 2-0. IU was then shutout against Ohio State to end the season.“I wish we could have done better,” Assistant Coach Stacey Matthiessen said. “This year, we’re very unlucky. They put the effort in. We couldn’t get the lucky break this year.”
(10/31/11 4:42am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With an eye on the future, IU Coach Mick Lyon inserted sophomore goalkeeper Shannon Flower in the 56th minute of Ohio State’s season-preserving 3-0 win that ended the year for IU.The Columbus, Ohio, native kept the Buckeyes off the scoreboard, making one save, but Ohio State had already established a lead.IU entered the match with an opportunity to end Ohio State’s 2011 campaign on its Senior Day. The Buckeyes needed a win or a draw to earn a spot in the Big Ten Tournament.Two first-half goals by Ohio State dashed the Hoosiers’ bid to end their five-match losing streak.The Buckeyes created 12 first-half shots, scoring when Tiffany Cameron’s shot rolled through senior goalkeeper Lindsey Campbell’s legs.Lyon later took Campbell out of the game in favor of Flower.“Shannon’s coming back,” Lyon said. “It’s a way to pay some respect to Lindsay. We’re proud of everything she’s done. It’s a way of honoring Campbell.”The Hoosiers, meanwhile, created three shots in the first half.The Buckeyes took a 2-0 lead into the half when Caitlyn Martin converted on a header in the 43rd minute.Senior midfielder Devon Beach, who finished her career starting 75 of 76 matches, said last season’s victory against Ohio State motivated the Buckeyes.“It’s kind of like a revenge game, knowing that we upset them last year,” she said. “I think they were on their heels knowing what we could’ve done. We could’ve beat them because we are a good team.”Senior forward Carly Samp did not play. She had sustained an ankle sprain during training Thursday, Lyon said.Samp said she experienced a lot of emotion going into the game.“It was nice to be able to travel and to be with the team on my last trip, to cheer my team on,” she said.
(10/28/11 1:53am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Results in Big Ten play this season have denied the IU women’s soccer team an opportunity to advance to a postseason match. But the team can still play spoiler against Ohio State.The Buckeyes, currently tied with Purdue and Michigan for the seventh seed in the conference, will have their senior day Sunday in Columbus, Ohio. An IU victory could mark the end of the careers of nine Buckeye seniors.“It’ll be one of the factors,” IU Coach Mick Lyon said. “We’ll be the last match of the Big Ten regular season. Ohio State should go into the game knowing what they need to do to get into the tournament.”IU, in contrast, will be able to play relaxed Sunday, said senior defender Kirsta Kellin.“Speaking for the seniors, we want to go out and have fun,” she said. “We’re going to play a lot better because of it. We don’t have anything to lose.”IU has 10 players from Ohio. Lyon said motivation should not be lacking.“For us to be spoilers will definitely be additional energy for the girls to compete,” he said. “We’ve got a ton of Ohio girls. There’s a reason why they didn’t go to Ohio State. That’s not their favorite place to be.”Sophomore midfielder Lisa Nouanesengsy, second on the team in scoring with six goals, said the team will not prepare for this match any differently.“I could see why this one is going to be a bigger game,” she said. “But we’re going to go at it the same way we do every game.”Nouanesengsy, a native of Huber Heights, Ohio, added that it “would be nice if we could knock them off. They made it to the Final Four last year.”Lyon said he knows the Buckeyes’ coaching staff well, and OSU’s Lori Walker and her staff will probably have last year’s loss on their poster board. Though the Buckeyes reached the Final last year, their loss in Bloomington cost them an outright Big Ten regular season championship.Lyon said he hopes to see his team end the careers of six seniors with a win. Defeating the Buckeyes would also snap IU’s five-match losing streak.“I hope we’re in a position where all of the seniors will be on the pitch at the end,” Lyon said. “That’s the greatest scenario because we’re winning the game, and we’re winning it comfortably. That way they leave their careers on the pitch finishing the game.”
(10/24/11 3:17am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The careers of six seniors on the IU women’s soccer team (6-11-1, 2-8) had been devoid of postseason play. The team needed a win against Wisconsin to maintain an opportunity to earn a Big Ten tournament berth this season. Instead, the Badgers’ 2-0 victory Sunday extinguished any chance for IU’s seniors to culminate their collegiate careers with a postseason match. The loss extended IU’s losing streak to five.Senior forward Carly Samp said it’s disappointing she and her fellow seniors won’t play in the postseason. However, she said she is looking forward to the season finale.In Sunday’s matchup, Wisconsin’s Cara Walls scored in the 21st minute. It was the eighth time in 10 Big Ten matches that IU’s opponents scored first.Two first-half saves for senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell kept IU within a goal at halftime, and the Hoosiers had an opportunity to score the equalizer in the 58th minute. Wisconsin committed a foul in the box, and junior forward Orianica Velasquez took the penalty kick. Wisconsin goalkeeper Michele Dalton made the save, snapping Velasquez’s perfection from the penalty spot.Junior defender Molly Buynak said the team was “a little disappointed” when Dalton made the save, but it motivated them.“We took the energy and used it to keep fueling us because we got two corners,” she said. “We were upset, but we also took it as a positive that we got the opportunity, and we could get more just like that.”IU attempted only two shots in the final 20 minutes.Friday was another loss for IU, a 3-1 decision. An issue that had plagued the Hoosiers all season struck again as Minnesota took a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute. The Gophers added the decisive goal in the 32nd minute. The Gophers attempted nine shots — scoring twice — before IU netted one.Velasquez accounted for the Hoosiers’ first two shots in the 18th and 21st minutes, respectively. Velasquez’s third shot hit the frame in the 35th minute.Velasquez was the only Hoosier to attempt a shot in the first half.IU scored in the 78th minute when a header by redshirt freshman midfielder Rebecca Dreher found the back of the net. Freshman midfielder Abby Smith took the corner kick and notched the assist, the second of her career. Dreher’s second goal of the season gave the Hoosiers their seventh second-half goal in 10 Big Ten matches. Dreher started in place of sophomore Becca Zambon.Zambon was ineligible due to a red card she received last week against Michigan State. Assistant Coach Stacey Matthiessen said her absence had minimal impact.“It’s always tough when somebody’s red carded and can’t play in the next game,” she said. “It would’ve been great having her there, but the player that went in for her did a fine job. I wouldn’t say those goals they scored were due to Zambon not being in.”IU’s two losses mathematically eliminated them from postseason contention.“I wish we could have done better,” Matthiessen said. “This year, we’re very unlucky. They put the effort in. We couldn’t get the lucky break this year.”
(10/21/11 4:15am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Two-time Michigan Miss Soccer and Gatorade National Player of the Year Laura Heyboer was frustrated last Sunday. Michigan State’s leading scorer, and the third-leading scorer in the Big Ten, was issued a yellow card in the 64th minute. She attempted two shots all match, though each was on goal.Despite this, Michigan State won against IU. A free kick taken by Olivia Stander with two seconds remaining gave the Spartans new life. They scored the game-winner in overtime.The loss cost the Hoosiers three points and an opportunity to move within one point of eighth-place Ohio State. IU Coach Mick Lyon said he made sure all the players and staff realized that one play did not wholly determine the outcome of the game.IU has to move on. Senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell acknowledged that but said placing Sunday’s match firmly in the rearview mirror will not be too easy.“It was devastating,” she said. “We controlled the whole game. It was the last two seconds. It was Senior Day. All those combined, it is going to be hard to move on. But as a team we had to move on. Next day, you got to forget about it.”The Hoosiers get another chance Friday when IU plays Minnesota, currently sixth in Big Ten standings. The Gophers’ freshman forward Taylor Uhl is ninth in the conference in scoring, averaging 0.56 goals per match. Lyon said his team can look to how it shut down Nebraska’s Morgan Marlborough and Michigan State’s Heyboer as examples.He said senior defender Kerri Krawczak is fit and healthy.The Hoosiers’ defense will be without the services of sophomore midfielder Becca Zambon. Her two yellow cards Sunday led to a red card. She is ineligible for the match against the Gophers. Lyon said redshirt freshman midfielder Rebecca Dreher will start.On Sunday, IU will face a stout Wisconsin defense, as the fifth-place Badgers have allowed 0.94 goals per match in 16 matches. Their goalkeeper, Michele Dalton, is fourth in the conference with an .824 save percentage.Junior forward Orianica Velasquez said the Hoosiers’ offensive objective will not change.“It’s soccer,” she said. “You have to shoot if you want to win games, if you want to score. All that we do in the offense is to attack the end line and go inside. It’s the same that we try to do and improve every game.”The Spartans’ game-tying goal came at an inopportune time. The five days that pass between matches will have no affect, Campbell said.“Once we come out to practice, it’s going on to the next game,” she said. “It’s similar to moving on from any other loss, but it does hurt a little more. It’ll stick with me.”Velasquez said Campbell is a great goalkeeper. It was just an unlucky play. Lyon said his team is capable of responding well on Friday.“They’re a real young group,” he said. “They can bounce back very quickly — very quickly.”
(10/18/11 4:13am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Before some high school soccer games and practices, Devon Beach and her team had to shovel snow. Beach, a senior midfielder, attended Northern Collegiate Institute and Vocational School in Sarnia, Ontario. She was the Vikings’ top goal scorer in her three seasons.“Coming here, it’s completely different because it’s so humid here, and it’s hot compared to home,” Beach said. “We’d play in minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit). It would always be freezing there.”IU Coach Mick Lyon said he understands the Canadian cold since he travels far north quite a bit.“I went up one weekend where they train,” Lyon said. “They train outdoors regardless of weather. I remember a couple of sessions watching them. They’re bundled up, and the balls were frozen, it was so cold. These kids train hard.”Lyon said he noticed Beach in the younger group, especially her ball skills, fitness and knowledge of the game. Her London Supernova club coach praised Beach, and Lyon said he liked a lot of things about how the Supernova coach developed his players.“I made the contact,” Lyon said “She wanted something a little further south from Sarnia. I’m happy she chose us.”Initially, IU was not in the picture for Beach.“Originally, I wasn’t thinking about coming this far from home,” she said. “I wanted to stay closer. I came down, spoke to Coach and saw the campus. I absolutely fell in love with the campus. Once I met the girls, it seemed like they were a family.“It was something I wanted to be a part of. I’m glad I did. I love it here.”Lyon said the way the senior developed her game earlier in her career helped him make the decision to move her to a midfield position.“She’s outstanding in the tackle,” Lyon said. “She’s probably one of the hardest tacklers that we’ve got. She can run all day. I’ve worked with her in developing her ability to win balls in the air.“She’s developed the skills that go with that defensive midfield player, matured into the role, where she fits right in.”In her IU career, she has started 72 of 73 matches, including all 16 during her senior season.“I have such a desire to play and competitiveness,” she said. “I like to think that I’m a leader on the field, which makes everyone else play a bit harder.”In fact, the only game she did not start was in her freshman season against Minnesota. Beach said it was strategy. Since then, she has started 62 consecutive matches. But that streak was almost broken at 51. In the 27th minute in a match against Xavier, Beach collided with Musketeer goalkeeper Katie Markesberry and sustained a head injury. However, Lyon said he was not worried.“She’s pretty fearless,” he said. “Sometimes she goes into things like it’s going to be a train wreck. That’s how competitive she is. She hates losing. With a player like that, you can’t sit on the edge, worrying that every tackle or collision’s going to put her out.“She’s one of those kids that shows up the next day and tells you, ‘Yeah, it hurts. So what?’ I figured Devon could go into any tackle or collision and come out smiling.”In an Indiana jersey, Beach has scored 14 goals, including two game-winners. One came in the 81st minute against Nebraska on Sept. 25 to give IU its first Big Ten win against the Huskers. But that isn’t what teammates will remember about her. On Sunday, she started her final home match in an Indiana uniform against Michigan State.“There’s so many things that make her a great player,” senior forward Carly Samp said. “The one thing that stands out to me is her heart. She has the most heart on the team. She goes into every tackle as hard as she can. She makes sure she leaves all her great playing on the field.”Sometimes it rubs opponents the wrong way.“Against a couple of Big Ten teams last year, they would call her names,” Samp said. “That’s her mentality. She’s a hard-working player. The perception changes when you’re playing against her.”Beach said her opponents are entitled to their opinion, and she does not care what those opinions entail.“I have heard multiple times that I’m a dirty player,” she said with a laugh. “I don’t think I am. I go into tackles hard, and I know how to slide tackle.“I don’t care what anyone else thinks about how I play. I’m not going to change my game if they think I’m a dirty player. It’s my game. If they want to think that, go ahead.”
(10/17/11 3:29am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As Senior Day kicked off with a 16 mile-an-hour wind from the southwest, IU chose to attack the east goal, seeking to use the wind to its advantage.All three goals were scored on that side of the field, and Michigan State scored two goals late in the game to escape with a 2-1 victory.Sophomore midfielder Lisa Nouanesengsy scored in the 29th minute to lift IU to a 1-0 lead. Junior forward Orianica Velasquez offered a shot from the right side of the box. The ball hit the crossbar. The dive of MSU goalkeeper Jill Fliestra denied her an opportunity to save the shot from Nouanesengsy, who was there to put home the rebound. It was her sixth goal of the season.For the first time in eight Big Ten matches, IU scored a first-half goal.“Our team came out to play,” senior defender Kerri Krawczak said. “Having the lead helps. It didn’t go our way. I’m really proud of this team.”The Spartans tied the game with two seconds remaining as MSU’s Olivia Stander hurriedly attempted a free kick that found the back of the net. The goal forced overtime, which was played in the golden goal format. The Spartans won the game in the 94th minute as Stander dribbled along the end line to the left of the goal. She crossed to Hannah Peterson, who did not miss the shot.IU Coach Mick Lyon said given the wind, it would be a game of two halves. Indiana created nine shots in the first half. Nouanesengsy’s goal came on the seventh attempt. However, Lyon said his team should have led by more than one.“We should have taken more advantage in the first half and scored a couple of goals,” he said. “One half, you know you’re going to attack and the other half, you’re going to defend.”IU’s defense sustained a significant blow in the 81st minute when sophomore midfielder Becca Zambon was issued a second yellow card. Zambon earned her first yellow in the 71st minute for delaying the game. The second card was issued for a challenge. She was out of the game.“Losing a player like that was disgraceful for her to be sent off,” Lyon said. “It’s not a disgrace for Zambon.”He said the 4-5-1 formation the team plays allows adjustments to be made “fairly easily,” and that redshirt freshman midfielder Rebecca Dreher did an outstanding job filling Zambon’s role.As a result, the Hoosiers played a woman down the rest of the match.“I’m disappointed that the girls were robbed of what they deserved: a win,” Lyon said.Despite the result, Krawczak said the scoreboard will not take away what they accomplished.“It’s hard to be disappointed on how our team played,” she said. “We got a little unlucky at the end. Some things are out of our control.“I’m proud to be on this team. It’s hard to be disappointed when you know the team played this well. A positive result would’ve been good. You can’t take away the memories that I’ve had on this field.”
(10/14/11 4:15am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Purdue scored first in the 28th minute on a counterattack from an IU corner when Purdue midfielder Mollie Kuramoto was able to tuck her shot just inside the post.Then the rain fell — in earnest.Purdue scored two more goals in 2:11 and was never seriously threatened en route to an 8-2 win.For the first 25 minutes, IU played well, IU Coach Mick Lyon said.“We owned them,” he said. “We had possession, we had chances (and) we looked well-balanced.”IU faced a 4-0 deficit at halftime, its biggest of the season. However, the team continued to battle in the second half.“You get this back one goal at a time,” Lyon said. “If you want to be part of a great comeback, this is your chance. We’ve put ourselves in that kind of position to have to do that. Go get one goal. Then let things flow from there.“When you’re four down at halftime, it’s easy to lie down and decide not to play. I didn’t see one player lie down and decide to quit on it.”At the start of the second half, senior midfielder Devon Beach was switched to an attacking midfielder role. She scored her second goal of the year in the 69th minute.Redshirt freshman midfielder Monica Melink gave the Hoosiers an opportunity to score their second goal, as she was pulled down in the box.Junior forward Orianica Velasquez converted the penalty kick to earn her team-leading seventh goal of the season.The team’s seniors saw Purdue raise the Golden Boot for the fourth time in four matches.“Coach (Tom) Crean talked to us this morning,” he said. “He was right about the fact that motivation is overrated. It’s inspiration. I’m going to do nothing, say nothing to them. If they’re not inspired to want to go out with a bang with something positive at home, then I probably don’t know them as well as I think I do.”Lyon said his team knows what’s at stake and can play well enough to end the home careers of the senior class with the team’s third Big Ten win.“The six seniors will be inspired on Sunday, without any doubt, to win their final home game in an IU uniform,” Lyon said. “It’s all down to them. If they want to show up on Sunday inspired to play, then we can compete, play with Michigan State and get a win. No doubt about it.”
(10/13/11 4:03am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Wednesday’s practice ended with the team huddle, as usual.The chant, however, was new. “Beat the Boilermakers.”It is one thing that the six seniors’ careers lack. In 2008, IU earned a 1-1 draw against its in-state rivals. Since then, the Hoosiers have lost two matches, each by one goal. Senior forward Carly Samp said she is eager to notch a win against the Boilermakers.“Everyone here hates Purdue,” Samp said. “I hate Purdue. We’ve come so close to beating them the past couple of years, just haven’t gotten the win. This game is going to be really special for all the seniors.”IU Coach Mick Lyon said his team was struggling with self-belief during its last match against Penn State. Meanwhile, approximately 100 miles to the northwest, Purdue, in 11th place in the Big Ten standings at the time, scored two goals in 3:39 to defeat Ohio State 2-1. The Buckeyes came into the match third in the standings. “That’s what I think about all the time,” Samp said. “You never know what can happen on the soccer field at any given day. It’s another day tomorrow.”Last season, for example, in the Hoosiers’ penultimate match, Ohio State came to Bloomington leading the Big Ten and ranked No. 18 in the country.The Buckeyes left Armstrong Stadium with a loss.“Last year, Ohio State came in thinking they were top dog, and we knocked ‘em off 1-0,” Lyon said. “That’s the thing about the Big Ten: All twelve teams are very good. Any game, somebody can win. We remind the girls of that.”Added motivation for at least one Hoosier came Sunday in the 76th minute when Penn State made a goalkeeper substitution. Senior midfielder Devon Beach was not pleased.“I was insulted by it,” Beach said. “It was a slap in the face.”Lyon, however, said he saw a silver lining.“(Junior defender) Molly Buynak and (redshirt freshman midfielder) Bekah White played a terrific game against one of the best players in the country,” he said. “We limited her to very few chances (4 shots). She got a couple of goals. But that’s not due to the play of those two in the back. There’s some belief there.”
(10/10/11 3:11am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>For one half, Indiana kept the nation’s leading scorer, Maya Hayes, to a single goal. However, Hayes’s goal in the sixth minute proved to be the game winner.Two more goals in the second half made the final margin 3-0 in Penn State’s favor.Sophomore defender Lara Ross said Hayes created a major objective for the team.“Our main focus was keeping one person on her at all times,” Ross said. “We kept (redshirt freshman midfielder) Bekah White trailing her. “She got away a few times. There’s a reason she’s the leading scorer in the nation. She’s fast.”Hayes’s goal put IU in a 1-0 halftime deficit for the third time in six Big Ten matches. “It keeps a lot of pressure on us knowing we’re down, and we have to fight for a goal and keep them from scoring too,” redshirt freshman Kate McCusker said. “We played so well in the first half. I don’t think the score reflects it at all. That goal they got was lucky, a 15-second lapse in our defensive judgment.”In the 29th minute, Ross required a substitute IU Coach Mick Lyon said her presence on the field was missed.“When Lara got hurt, she was playing extremely well,” Lyon said. “She adds to our offense because she gives good support behind who is playing in front of her. That was a tough injury.”Sophomore forward Rebecca Candler said the Hoosiers looked to possess the ball.“If we have the ball, they can’t score,” she said. “Our biggest defense is having the ball. When we’re on offense, they don’t have the ball. “We did a good job of keeping the ball from them. We had (an) unlucky slip.”Penn State registered its ninth shutout in 15 matches.Penn State entered the match leading the Big Ten with 83 corners earned. IU successfully defended the first five. The Nittany Lions’ sixth corner resulted in a goal, giving them a 2-0 lead.Hayes tacked on the third goal in the 67th minute, as goalkeeper Erin McNulty’s ball found Hayes, who chipped the ball past senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell to earn her 18th goal. McNulty earned her second assist of the season as Penn State earned its sixth consecutive victory.
(10/07/11 4:33am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Hoosiers (6-6-1, 2-3) welcome No. 21 Penn State, which is riding a six-game winning streak, to Bloomington on Sunday in IU’s penultimate home match of the season.Penn State is dynamic offensively, featuring the nation’s leading scorer Maya Hayes. Six of Hayes’s goals are game winners. Junior defender Cierstin Burks said she and her teammates will have to be on “extra alert” when marking her.The Hoosiers had success containing another prolific scorer, Nebraska’s Morgan Marlborough on Sept. 25, holding her to six shot attempts with one on goal. IU Coach Mick Lyon said his team can draw on its success against Marlborough.“We make sure they remember good things,” Lyon said. “We can play against a player like that, force her to shoot near-post all day, then you got a chance of winning game.”The Hoosiers had four corner kicks in their two matches last weekend, allowing Penn State to take the conference lead in corners attempted. Indiana averages 6.31 per game, second behind the Nittany Lions and Ohio State.Burks said she is cognizant of Penn State’s ability to earn corner kicks.“We need to focus on defending them, knowing they get a lot of corner kicks,” Burks said. “It’s doing the things we already do well: Getting corner kicks and making sure we’re defending them.”Offensively, IU will look to reestablish itself from the set piece, senior midfielder Kaylin Clow said.“The last couple games, we weren’t getting as many corners,” she said. “We’re going to get back to it. Taking the ball down the line and trying to cross (it) right in front of goal. That’s what creates corners. It’s going to be a good game as far as corners.”The Nittany Lions lead the conference with eight shutouts. They are tied for second in goals allowed, as opponents have managed 11 goals in 14 matches.“Their defense has been solid,” Clow said. “It would be awesome to be the team to break that streak.”To be that team, Lyon acknowledges his team must play close attention to Hayes.“This is a key player,” he said. “Shut her down, and you’ve got half the game won.”
(10/03/11 2:46am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Matches decided by 1-0 scores had not gone the Hoosiers’ way in Big Ten play. But on Sunday, sophomore midfielder Lisa Nouanesengsy’s fifth goal of the season helped the Hoosiers earn a 1-0 victory against Northwestern and gave IU its first win in its fourth true road match.“I will probably sleep better,” IU Coach Mick Lyon said. “I feel so happy for this group of girls because the last couple of years, we’ve had some terrific young women who had played some great soccer and come out on the losing end of some 1-0 battles. I’m very proud of this group by doing what’s needed to win these games.”Nouanesengsy said it was a “great win.” Senior forward Carly Samp, a Barrington, Ill., native, had not defeated Northwestern in her IU career. Sunday changed that.“It’s always great to get a win when I’m playing close to my home town,” she said. “I had a lot of people at the game watching who go to Northwestern who are from Barrington. It’s always special to have that.”It wasn’t easy. In the first half, Northwestern out shot IU, 8-1. Senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell denied the Wildcats’ shots on goal, recording three saves.“The eight shots they did have were from far away,” junior defender Molly Buynak said. “We gave them shots, but the shots they did have, Lindsay was able to save. We handled the pressure well. We were determined to pull out a win.”Neither Northwestern nor IU took a corner kick in the first half. For the first three halves of the Hoosiers’ Illinois road trip weekend, IU did not take one. They earned four in the second half Sunday.“It’s really important that we create corner kicks,” Nouanesengsy said. “The last two games we haven’t as much. We need to get back on track, get corner kicks so we can have better opportunities to score more goals.”Prior to the match Friday, the Hoosiers had scored 11 of their 19 goals in the first half. They were not able to do so in the first half against Illinois. The Fighting Illini took a 1-0 lead into the half. IU scored to tie the game in the 48th minute when redshirt freshman Kate McCusker recovered a loose ball in the box and converted. With her goal, McCusker became the eighth different Hoosier to score her first collegiate point this season.The tie lasted 5:22, as Illinois scored the game-winning goal in the 53rd minute. Illinois added two more goals in the match to win 4-1.Lyon said after the match that his team, the youngest in the Big Ten, cannot afford to stop competing, but dwelling on past mistakes serves no purpose.“We didn’t spend much time after the game rehashing things,” he said. “Sports — it’s a wonderful thing. Sometimes, you can show up, be prepared and things don’t go your way. We were certainly not happy whatsoever in how we competed. We had 20 minutes of dreadful soccer. That cost them any chance.”
(09/30/11 4:10am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>An IU coach with six national championships to his name sat in the press box for the women’s and men’s matches Friday night when the Hoosiers played Iowa and Penn State, respectively.After the Hoosier women’s win Sunday against Nebraska, women’s assistant coach Orlando Cervantes said he sought that championship coach, Jerry Yeagley, and his perspective.“‘You guys are playing well,’” Cervantes said Yeagley had told him. “’You’re creating chances. It’s going to come. It’s one of those stretches where nothing is working.’” Cervantes relayed that conversation to his players. He said they felt a lot less pressure.IU sits atop the Big Ten in corner kicks, earning 7.09 per match. The team is creating opportunities. It’s just not converting opportunities into goals, freshman midfielder Abby Smith said.“We know we can do it,” she said following the Hoosiers’ 1-0 loss against Iowa. “We have the play there. We’re right there. We just need to keep working.”On Saturday, IU took a different approach. They did not discuss strategy. Instead, Cervantes said, they played kickball. Senior midfielder Devon Beach said the informal game gave the team an opportunity to relax.“Playing kickball was a lot of fun,” she said. “It calmed us all down and shows from the coaches that they trust us, and that they know we can do well. There’s nothing we can do other than put the ball in the net to change.”After a five-match homestand, the Hoosiers prepare for road matches against Illinois and Northwestern. The Hoosiers look to build off the result earned against Nebraska, Cervantes said.“We told them (last) week, ‘We just need that one game where you’re going to get one goal. And then you get two goals, and it’s going to take that elephant off your back.’ Hopefully today was that game,” he said.For Illinois, their two one-goal losses last weekend cost them their No. 22 ranking. Sophomore midfielder Becca Zambon said that fact is irrelevant.“They’re just another opponent,” she said. “With how we played against Nebraska, I think we’ll come out strong, play our own game and hopefully get another win.”IU Coach Mick Lyon said his team’s victory against the Huskers caused his team to practice with more alacrity.“They’re excited about the upcoming things,” he said. “We haven’t talked about Nebraska — that’s done. The elation of getting the points, knowing that they played well against a good team, beat them and got their just rewards.“That’s carried through in (a) great training session yesterday.”This weekend will present IU with two distinct opponents. Illinois will look to bounce back from its two straight losses. Meanwhile, the Wildcats have struggled, scoring one goal in three Big Ten losses.Lyon said his team is prepared.“The team right now is in a very good place mentally,” he said. “We just got to make sure they stay in a good place physically by the right kind of rest, recovery, training in preparation for Illinois and Northwestern.”
(09/30/11 3:04am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>On May 1, the women’s water polo team defeated rival No. 6 Michigan 5-3 in the Collegiate Water Polo Association Eastern Championship to earn the team its second NCAA Tournament berth.The experience might not have happened for them had it not been for three players almost two decades ago.Eighteen years ago, Amy Pankoke, Maryann Lekas and Natasha Kuberski spent fall semester 1993 playing on the men’s water polo club team. The following spring, they started the women’s water polo club team. They played as a club team for four years before earning an opportunity to become a varsity sport, Coach Barry King said.“In November 1996, the officers of the club were invited to make a presentation to a committee in the athletics department regarding the addition of a female varsity sport,” King wrote in an email. “Four club teams were invited: water polo, field hockey, rowing and lacrosse. Of the four, water polo was added first, for the 1997-98 academic year.”King coached the team for three years when it was at club status, and he was promoted to head coach when the team made the leap to varsity status.In the Big Ten, aside from the Hoosiers, only the University of Michigan has women’s water polo as a varsity sport. This causes confusion, King said.“Fans and supporters of Indiana Athletics understand the Big Ten,” he said. “They are not sure what the Collegiate Water Polo Association is, though.”That is not the case in Ann Arbor, head coach Matt Anderson said.“Our supporters understand what the CWPA is largely because we have our hockey team in the CCHA. Our lacrosse team (in the CCLA) are not members of the Big Ten,” he said. “They understand it’s a different conference and it’s not a Big Ten recognized conference.”Dan Sharadin, commissioner of the CWPA, said efforts to expand the number of Big Ten institutions featuring varsity women’s water polo teams have been nonexistent in the past couple of years.“We haven’t talked with any of them in recent years,” he said.Sharadin said the interest is there, but the ball isn’t in his side of the pool.“We would certainly like to,” he said. “There’s no question we would love to see more Big Ten programs added. My particular job is to manage the function of the conference itself. Part of that involves growing the conference and attracting new members. To really be effective growing the conference on the varsity level, you have to have a tremendous amount of time devoted to that particular task.”Sharadin said there aren’t the physical resources or personnel to devote all the time specifically to attracting new varsity members.Anderson said, as of right now, he has not spoken with Michigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon about Brandon persuading his fellow Athletic Directors to add varsity water polo teams.“There are times that we discuss what might benefit the growth of the community here in terms of the sport you coach and your team,” Anderson said. “I will have that opportunity to talk to him about it."Administrators should not be concerned about the financial aspects of adding a varsity women’s water polo team, Sharadin said.“Water polo is one of the least-cost alternatives to add of any varsity sport,” he said. “If you already have the capital investment — the pool — and nobody else is training at that time, water polo presents a great economic value.”Anderson said a Big Ten brand would definitely help recruiting.“To be able to say we had a Big Ten water polo conference would clearly elevate the popularity and the respect that other Big Ten institutions would give the sport.”
(09/30/11 2:48am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Conference play has not been kind to the Hoosiers the past three seasons, as IU has compiled a 7-20-3 record. The Hoosiers are 7-7 in 1-0 matches. In 2008, IU dropped the first five conference games 1-0. The 2011-12 Indiana women’s soccer team features eight freshmen, five redshirt freshmen and six sophomores. Coach Mick Lyon said his team’s inexperience provides a chance to work with the younger players’ “clear chalkboards.”“Having this youth is like, ‘Can you change some things?’” Lyon said. “We’ve been the 1-0 team. We’ve been on the wrong end of 1-0. Just imagine if we could reverse that.”Last year, IU posted a 2-8 record in Big Ten play. The Hoosiers were outscored 22-9, or 2.2 goals per game. (Offensively, IU averaged 0.9 goals per game.) Lyon said too many of the goals scored on his team were soft.“Analyzing last season, we gave away too many goals,” he said. “We’re not going to win games if we’re giving up bags of goals.”In IU’s nine nonconference matches this season, the Hoosiers allowed 12 goals. The defensive play is much improved this season, Lyon said.Senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell’s performances have proven to be a big reason why, he said.“She has been playing well this whole season,” senior midfielder Devon Beach said. “She’s gained so much confidence. The saves that she’s making have kept us in games. “I feel so comfortable with her back there. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”Offensively, Lyon and his coaching staff implemented a new formation this season. The system is unlike any Lyon said he has utilized in his nine prior seasons at the helm. The new system allows players such as senior forward Carly Samp and junior forward Orianica Velasquez the freedom in the formations to do what they do best, Lyon said.“When you got very talented, creative players, you don’t want to put them in a box and tell them to play one way,” he said.Senior midfielder Kaylin Clow explained how the system is different from in years past. She said they ran a 4-4-2 most of the time last year. “Our outside midfielders are looking to get higher,” Clow said. “We have one forward instead of two. We have more of a target player that needs to hold the ball for us so we can all get up instead of two players working off each other up top.”The problem is that it’s harder to get open and find spaces, she said. But the formations are working really well, and the team is working more on pushing the outside midfielders up, so it’s more of a 4-3-3,” Clow said. Samp said the outside midfielders are vital to creating chances offensively. With a lone forward up top, sometimes it’s more difficult for that forward to play off the outside midfielders that are supposed to be coming up, she said.“Having support is completely necessary,” Samp said. “It’s hard for that forward to be by themselves. We need everyone to be in the mix so we can get an attack going. The system has been great for us offensively.”But even with the formation change and its subsequent results, the game doesn’t change, Clow said.“We play what we know,” she said. “Do simple, easy things and take it on the field with us. It comes naturally. We don’t try to focus too much on a new formation. We have to do this. We play our game.”
(09/29/11 5:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>“You’re concussed,”the training staff said to the now-senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell two years ago, following IU’s upset of No. 6 Florida. Campbell started the match but required a substitute after a collision in the 67th minute. IU Coach Mick Lyon called it a “pretty significant challenge that knocked her into next week.” The injury began a new chapter in Campbell’s IU career, a long road back to being the team’s goalkeeper***Lyon was late to start recruiting Campbell in 2008.“I had a senior goalkeeper — because she redshirted through injury — that was supposed to be coming back the next year,” he said. “After the season, she changed her mind and decided she wanted to graduate.”And so he needed a new goalkeeper.Campbell hails from Dallas. She was playing in a tournament for her club team Sting Royal 90 in Florida when Lyon first noticed her.“I was down in Florida watching an event and saw Lindsay play for a club team,” Lyon said. “(I) went back and watched her again. I was impressed with her handling. She had played at a club program that was at a good level. She was a senior. I could reach out to her. She was keen on getting out of Texas. It was a pretty quick decision.”Campbell made up her mind to commit to the Hoosiers on a campus visit.“I had a blast visiting,” she said. “There were no cliques on the team.”***As a freshman in 2008, Campbell played in 14 matches, starting 12, and played every minute of the conference season. She posted a 0.78 goals against average in conference play.Her sophomore season, she completed a 658:37 shutout streak that spanned the last four matches of her freshman season and the first four matches of her sophomore campaign. The streak, the second-longest in school history, ended when she allowed an own goal in the 62nd minute against Florida.Five minutes later, she sustained a concussion.***“We were flying the next day to go to Atlanta,” Lyon said. “She was so out of it that our team doctors and trainers wouldn’t allow her to fly.”A week later, the Hoosiers were in Hempstead, N.Y., and Campbell was back in goal. She missed only one match due to the initial concussion sustained against Florida.Then, on Oct. 24, 2009, one day prior to the IU’s match against Iowa, she began showing effects from the concussion and missed the final five games of the season as a precaution.Her 0.57 goals against average that season led the Big Ten and still stands as the best single season average in school history.***As a junior, Campbell played in five matches, starting two.“Last year, there was some tremendous competition,” Lyon said. “Shannon Flower was coming in as a freshman. Lauren Hollandsworth was a tremendously dedicated student-athlete.”Additionally, Campbell had to deal with two deaths in the family.“It was my cousin over the summer,” she said. “He was like a brother to me. Over the summer, it was tough. That’s part of the reason I wasn’t fully mentally there. And then my uncle at Christmas. It had an impact. I tried not to let it, but it did.”***“I told her she could quit at any time she wanted,’” said her mother Shari Campbell. “But she didn’t want to quit. We counseled her not to play until she really felt she was ready. Something I admire about Lindsay, she wasn’t going to put herself on the field until she felt like she could do her job well.”Campbell said she is once again emotionally ready to play.“Honestly, what brought me out the most is having fun instead of coming to practice and being afraid that I’m going to get hit in the face again,” she said. “As long as I focus on the fun side, it really relieves the stress and makes playing a lot easier. I feel back to my original self.”***This season, Campbell has started all 11 games she has played, posting one shutout and a .780 save percentage. At the Notre Dame adidas Invitational, she earned Goalkeeper MVP after 10 saves in two matches.“She has been playing well this whole season,” senior midfielder Devon Beach said. “She’s gained so much confidence. The saves that she’s making have kept us in games. I feel so comfortable with her back there. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”Having her teammates’ confidence makes a significant impact in her play, Campbell said.“It makes a huge difference,” she said. “Being able to connect in that way, having trust in who is in front of you and them having trust in me makes us play so much more fluidly.”Currently, Campbell has 12 shutouts in her career, which is the third-most in program history. She’s earned 16 wins, placing her fifth in school history. Still, she said she won’t let her mind drift to such things until her career is finished.“I try not to think about statistics,” she said. “It’s dangerous to focus on records while you’re playing because it can play mind tricks with you. I try to keep the ball out of the net. If I’m able to do that with the help of my defenders, the stats will come on their own.”
(09/26/11 4:15am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU’s match Sunday against Nebraska began with a 1-0 deficit just as their other two Big Ten matches had. But this time, they rallied. Junior forward Ori Velasquez scored off an assist from senior forward Carly Samp in the 71st minute to draw the Hoosiers even in an eventual 2-1 IU victory.The goal was made possible by an adjustment, assistant coach Orlando Cervantes said.“We’re playing Carly up top as much as we could,” he said. “Early on, she wasn’t getting the ball enough at her feet. We needed her to get the ball at her feet and hold it. We knew Hayes (the Nebraska defender) would step up on her. Once she did that, we were trying to find Ori in those gaps. The second half, she started doing that more and got those two goals.”Ten minutes later, Samp held the ball at the edge of the box on Nebraska goalkeeper Emma Stevens’s left side. Hayes approached to contest.Samp held the ball while sophomore defender Lara Ross made a run behind her. Samp found Ross near the goal line. Ross crossed the ball. Sophomore midfielder Lisa Nouanesengsy wasn’t able to strike the ball cleanly.Because of that, the ball rebounded to senior midfielder Devon Beach, whose shot gave IU its first conference lead in the 251st minute of Big Ten play. It was Beach’s first goal of the season.“(Ori’s goal) was a confidence booster,” Beach said. “Once we get one, then they’re going to keep coming because we’re getting so close. It did give everyone a boost. We just scored. We can win this.”Friday against Iowa, one mistake in their defensive third about three minutes before halftime put the Hoosiers in a 1-0 deficit that Iowa held through 90 minutes.“We got caught with the ball in the back,” IU Coach Mick Lyon said. “That’s unfortunate. It’s something that’s happened to us two times. Sometimes our back players try to overplay.”Iowa had an opportunity to double their lead in the 72nd minute when the Hawkeyes earned a penalty kick. Senior goalkeeper Lindsay Campbell saved a shot by Cloe Lacasse.Freshman midfielder Abby Smith said that save helped give IU a sense of urgency.“When we see her make a big-time save like that, it makes us want to attack and get that goal,” Smith said.Coming into this weekend, IU led the conference in corner kicks at 7.67 per match. Iowa held them to two.Nouanesengsy had a couple of great opportunities for IU. Each time, Iowa’s Emily Moran made the save.Moran finished the game with six saves. She earned the shutout and sent the Hoosiers to their second 1-0 loss in conference play.“Every loss hurts,” Smith said. “A 1-0 loss is positive — it’s only one goal. We could’ve come back from that.”