Indiana University Athletics
HOOSIERS RAIN ON WILDCATS 1-0
10/18/1998 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Bloomington, Ind. -- The top-ranked Indiana men's soccer team claimed a tie for the regular season Big Ten title with a 1-0 victory over Northwestern.
Sunday's game was played in a driving rainstorm and the wet conditions slowed down the Indiana goal-scoring but not the offense. The Hoosiers had a season high 23 shots and numerous chances to score had it not been for the stellar play of Northwestern goalkeeper Matt Keeler.
Keeler made 11 saves and the Wildcats made 13 saves in to keep the game close. "I have to give Keeler a lot of credit," Indiana head coach Jerry Yeagley said. "He had a great game under these difficult conditions."
As in previous games this season, the Hoosiers had trouble with their finishing. The team also played without leading scorer Aleksey Korol who sat out the game with an ankle injury.
"Aleksey could have played if we felt threatened," Yeagley said. "The chances we missed in the first and second half are very frustrating."
And it did take a top-level goal for the Hoosiers to register the victory. Dema Kovalenko took a pass from Gino DiGuardi at the top of the penalty area and blasted a shot past Keeler into the upper right corner of the goal in the 57th minute.
Kovalenko led the Hoosier attack all day as he had a team-high six shots.
The wet field slowed the Hoosiers' attack as their passes were slow to get to the player they were intended for. "The condition affected us, DiGuardi said. "But we need to be a team that finds a way to win and fight through adversity. It wasn't our day today, but in the end, we did find a way to win."
Sunday's victory, coupled with Ohio State's 1-0 overtime loss at Penn State means the Hoosiers have clinched at least a tie for the regular season. Indiana has now won or tied for the regular season title five times in the eight years that soccer has been a Big Ten sponsored sport.
© Indiana University Athletics, 1998
