Indiana University Athletics
No. 14 Hoosiers Host In-State Rival IUPUI
10/9/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 9, 2006
IUPUI Game Notes in PDF Format
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The 14th-ranked Indiana Hoosiers (8-3-2) will host in-state rival IUPUI on Tuesday, Oct. 10. The team is coming off back-to-back shutout victories.
Hoosier News and Notes
o The Hoosiers are on a six-game unbeaten streak after earning their second consecutive shutout of the season against Northwestern on Oct. 1, 1-0. Freshman Eric Alexander scored his second goal of the season in the win, while senior Kevin Robson had his team-leading fifth assist of the year on the play.
o With two goals last week, Alexander earned Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors, and was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week on Oct. 9.
o Sophomore goalkeeper Chay Cain was honored as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9, and was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week. He made 10 saves last week for the Hoosiers.
o The Hoosiers are currently first in the Big Ten standings. They remain the only unbeaten team in the conference.
o Indiana moved back into the National Coaches Association of America poll at No. 14 on Tuesday, Oct. 3, after a two-week absence. The Hoosiers are ranked second in the Great Lakes Region behind No. 1 Notre Dame.
Scouting IUPUI
o The Jaguars (6-7) are coming off a tough 2-1 loss to Oakland on Oct. 7. Before that, the team had won its last two games, a 5-2 victory over IPFW and a 1-0 win over Centenary.
o Vangel Nacovski leads the team with seven goals on the season, and has 15 points. Eric Weigman is also in double digits in points, tallying five goals and four assists on the year for 14 points.
o In goal, Drew Deffner has 58 saves. He is backed by defenders David Rabb, Greg Pottorff and Ben Heidari.
o IUPUI and Indiana have played each other every year since 2000, always in Bloomington. The Hoosiers have won all six games, and have outscored the Jaguars 20-1 in those six games.
o Last year, Indiana defeated IUPUI 5-0. Sophomore Kevin Noschang had two goals in the win, while senior Kevin Robson also tallied a score.
Coach's Corner
Head coach Mike Freitag previews the team's upcoming game with IUPUI.
Although the Jaguars are 6-7 on the year, Coach (Steve) Franklin's team is always tough. The local matchups are always tough in the sense that both programs know each other so well. He sees my players in the summer at soccer camp, and he knows me as a coach, as well as our system of play. In the past we've had some close games with them, including a 2-1 overtime game in 2002 and a 1-0 contest in 2003, which was a year we won the national championship.
Every opponent we play is a quality opponent. If we let them get chances early and they take advantage of those chances, we could easily find ourselves down.
Outshooting Opponents
o The Hoosiers are averaging 15.0 shots per game, while their opponents are averaging just 9.2 shots per game.
o On four occasions this year, Indiana has held its opponents to six shots or fewer. The team outshot No. 8 Creighton 22-6, UAB 19-5, No. 2 Connecticut 17-3, and Kentucky 15-6.
o No. 2 Connecticut was held without a shot until the 74th minute of the game.
o Kentucky came into the game ranked third in the nation in scoring offense (3.11 goals per game).
The Corner Café
o Indiana holds an 81-46 advantage in corner kicks against opponents this season, and has had the advantage in 10 of 13 games this season.
o The Hoosiers have totaled two goals this year directly off corner kicks.
Overtime Is Our Time
o Of 13 games this season, seven have gone into overtime. Indiana is 4-1-2 in overtime games. The lone loss was a 5-4 loss to Notre Dame on Sept. 3. The latest that the Hoosiers have scored in a game that they won was against Michigan State on Oct. 1, as Darren Yeagle netted the game-winner 106:48 into the game.
Alexander The Great
o Freshman midfielder Eric Alexander made a name for himself last week with his first and second career goals. He scored his first goal of the year against Louisville on Oct. 4, and tallied the only goal of the game vs. Northwestern on Oct. 7.
o Alexander was named as the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9, and earned a spot on the College Soccer News National Team of the Week.
Cain is Able
o Sophomore goalkeeper Chay Cain has recorded four shutouts this season, and has 29 saves on the year. Cain recorded his first back-to-back shutouts against Louisville (2-0) on Oct. 4, and Northwestern (1-0) on Oct. 7.
o Cain was honored as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9, and was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week.
o Backed by a strong defense, he has a goals allowed average of 0.68.
Youth Reigns
o Freshman Darren Yeagle is tied for first on the team with 11 points on the year (five goals, one assist). His last goal came against Michigan State on Oct. 1.
o Sophomore Brian Ackley has four goals on the year, and is third on the team with eight points.
o Freshman Eric Alexander has two goals and two assists on the year.
o Sophomore Brad Ring has scored twice, while sophomore John Mellencamp has an assist.
Can I Help You?
o Senior Kevin Robson leads the team with five assists on the year, while senior John Michael Hayden has three.
o Robson had an assist against Northwestern, one vs. Kentucky, two assists against Tulsa, and an assist against No. 2 Connecticut. He is ranked third in the Big Ten in assists.
o Hayden had assists against No. 8 Creighton, UAB and No. 15 Notre Dame.
Running Roby
o Senior Kevin Robson has three goals on the year and is tied for the team lead with 11 points. He scored two goals against Michigan on Sept. 24, and had an assist against Kentucky on Sept. 27, with another assist against Northwestern on Oct. 7.
o He earned Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week accolades for his efforts against No. 21 Akron and Michigan.
Smiley Scores
o Freshman Darren Yeagle (nicknamed Smiley by his teammates) is tied for the team lead with 11 points on the year (five goals, one assist).
o He was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts against Kentucky on Sept. 27 and Michigan State on Oct. 1. Against Michigan State, he scored the game-winning goal in the 107th minute, and was taken out in the box to earn the Hoosiers a penalty kick that tied the game in the 63rd minute.
Recapping the Northwestern Game
o Indiana posted its second consecutive shutout at home, blanking Northwestern on Oct. 7, 1-0.
o Freshman Eric Alexander scored in the 28th minute for the game's lone goal. Kevin Robson sent Alexander a thru ball in the midfield, and Alexander curled it into the upper right 90 past a diving Will Briley from 20 yards out.
o Northwestern was continuously stifled by the Indiana defense. Although the Wildcats had the ball in their attacking third a number of times during the game, they did not have many good looks at the net.
o Chay Cain made four stops in goal for his fourth shutout of the season.
Freshman Phenoms
o Darren Yeagle has started in 11 of the first 13 games for Indiana. Yeagle scored his first career goal against No. 2 Connecticut on Sept. 1. He currently is tied for the team lead with 11 points (five goals, one assist).
o Eric Alexander has started the last six games, and has two goals and two assists on the year.
o Kevin Alston started in 10 of Indiana's first 13 games. Ofori Sarkodie has five starts on the year.
o Freshman Lee Hagedorn has also seen playing time.
Hoosiers Take On Ranked Teams
o The Hoosiers regularly play one of the toughest schedules in the nation. In its first 11 games this season, Indiana has played five teams ranked by the NSCAA, plus a ranked opponent in the preseason.
o Indiana has taken on No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3. The Hoosiers defeated No. 1 Maryland 1-0 in exhibition action, tied No. 2 Connecticut 1-1, and fell to No. 3 Southern Methodist 1-0.
o Illinois-Chicago was not ranked in the preseason, but the team has moved into the top-25 with its play to start the year. Indiana defeated UIC 1-0 in exhibition play.
o Saint Louis, although not ranked the week it played the Hoosiers, was ranked 20th the next week. In addition, Kentucky has been ranked as high as No. 13 this year, and Northwestern was ranked at No. 14 earlier in the season. Michigan State was ranked as high as No. 13 by Soccer America.
o UAB has also been ranked in the top 25 this year. Indiana defeated UAB 2-1 in its second game of the season.
o The other three ranked teams that Indiana played were No. 8 Creighton, No. 15 Notre Dame and No. 21 Akron.
Hoosiers Lead Nation in Attendance
o The Hoosiers are one of college soccer's most watched teams year in and year out. This season, Indiana is averaging 2,881 fans per contest after six home games.
o Last year, Indiana finished second in the nation in average attendance, pulling in 3,112 fans per game.
o During the 2003 campaign, IU led the nation in total attendance with a total of 28,778 attending Armstrong Stadium for 13 home affairs. Indiana averaged 2,214 for home matches, which ranked third nationally. In 2004, the Hoosiers averaged 2,385, leading the nation.
o The Hoosiers have a history of drawing large crowds. Indiana ranked among the top three in average attendance in 2001 and 2002. Also in 2001, the Hoosiers ranked third in total attendance with 25,630 visiting Armstrong Stadium. In 2001, the Hoosiers averaged 2,330 over their 11 games. The following season, the Hoosiers averaged 2,195, which was second nationally.
