No. 9 Indiana Travels to Kentucky

Indiana has just two regular-season games remaining, beginning with a trip to Kentucky Wednesday night.

10/30/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Oct. 30, 2007

No. 10/9 INDIANA (11-4-2, 4-0-1 Big Ten) at KENTUCKY (6-7-2, 4-2-0 Conference USA)

Oct. 31, 2007  7 p.m.
UK Soccer Complex  Lexington, Ky.
Series: Indiana leads, 19-1-1
Last Meeting: Indiana 1, Kentucky 0 (Sept. 27, 2006)

SETTING THE SCENE
The Hoosiers will close out the regular season with two-straight road matches, beginning with Kentucky on Wednesday night.

NEWS AND NOTES
 Indiana is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games after a 1-0 win over Penn State on Sunday.
 With the win, the Hoosiers clinched at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title.
 Indiana will wrap up Big Ten play on the road at Wisconsin on Nov. 4.
 Junior midfielder Brad Ring recorded his fourth goal of the season (second game winner) and second goal in as many games against the Nittany Lions.
 Ring's score in the 50th minute came off an assist from freshman Michael Roach.
 Ring is now tied for second on the team in goals (four) and game-winning goals (two).
 He also had a goal in a 2-1 win over Evansville on Oct. 24. For his efforts he was named to the College Soccer News and Soccer America Teams of the Week.
 He was also honored as the Big Ten Player of the Week.
 Indiana goalkeeper Chay Cain and the Hoosiers have posted four straight shutouts in Big Ten play and have blanked four of five league opponents. Their only blemish was two goals allowed in a 3-2 win at Michigan (Sept. 29).
 Indiana has eight shutouts this season, with seven of those credited to Cain.
 IU has come back from a 1-0 deficit three times this season.
 A 0-0 double overtime tie with Ohio State on Oct. 21 is the only time Indiana has been shut out this season.
 Neil Wilmarth scored his first career goal at Notre Dame on Oct. 17. It proved to be the game winner as Kevin Noschang crossed the ball into the freshman who deftly placed it in the back of the net.
 Noschang was the Big Ten Player of the Week and NSCAA Player of the week for his performance in South Bend.
 After defeating No. 4 Notre Dame on Oct. 17, Indiana improved to 4-0-1 against top-10 teams this season.
 The Hoosiers are 5-2-2 against top-25 teams this season.
 Indiana is undefeated in its last eight Big Ten matches (7-0-1), including last year's Big Ten tournament.
 Daniel Kelly has put home the ball on two of six shots in league play.  Indiana's 1-0 win over Northwestern on Oct. 14 marked the program's 600th victory.
 Billy Weaver has a team-best four assists.
 Indiana's three goals at Notre Dame on Oct. 17 marked the third time this season the Hoosiers have put three in the net. They are 3-0 when doing so.  The Hoosiers are 5-4-1 when scoring just one goal.
 Indiana is 1-1-2 in overtime matches.
 The game against Louisville on Oct. 10 marked just the fourth time this season the Hoosiers have trailed in the shots column. They are 0-3-1 when being outshot by an opponent.
 With his two goals against Michigan State, Kevin Alston was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week and earned a spot on the Soccer America, College Soccer News and Top Drawer Soccer Teams of the Week on Oct. 8.
 Billy Weaver was named to the Soccer America and College Soccer News Teams of the Week on Oct. 1 after his performances last week where he picked up two assists and a goal as the Hoosiers went 2-0 with wins over Butler and No. 10 Michigan.
 Ring was named TopDrawerSoccer Player of the Week and was named to the College Soccer News Team of the Week on Sept. 10.
 The Hoosiers were 1-0 winners over No. 1 UCLA in front of a record crowd of 7,420 at the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic on Sept. 2.
 With the win, Indiana is 2-0 in its last two meetings with No. 1 ranked teams at Armstrong Stadium. In 2005, IU defeated No. 1 Akron, 1-0 in overtime.
 Kevin Noschang was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week and NSCAA Player of the Week on Sept. 3.
 Goalkeeper Chay Cain shared Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors on Oct. 15 after a shutout of No. 6 Northwestern.

ABOUT THE WILDCATS
 It has been an up-and-down season for Kentucky with a 6-7-2 overall record heading into Wednesday night.
 The Wildcats are riding a three-game win streak heading into the game, picking up Conference USA wins over UCF (3-2), Marshall (3-1) and Florida International (2-1).
 Brad Frederick had the game-winner at FIU on Saturday, scoring his first goal of the season in the 61st minute.
 Barry Rice leads the team with seven goals and an assist for 15 points.  Also recording multiple goals this season are Aaron Swanson (five) and Tim Crone (three).
 Goalkeeper Dan Williams has played every minute between the pipes, allowing 25 scores for a 1.59 GAA. He has 63 saves for a .716 save percentage.
 Kentucky is 0-1-1 against Big Ten teams this season.
 The Wildcats lost to Michigan, 4-0 and tied Michigan State, 1-1.

SERIES HISTORY
 Indiana leads the series, 19-1-1.
 The Hoosiers are 11-0-1 in the last 12 meetings.
 Kentucky's only victory came in 1995, 1-0 at Armstrong Stadium.
 The two teams played to a 0-0 tie in Lexington in 2004.
 The Hoosiers posted a 1-0 overtime victory last season in Bloomington.
 Brian Ackley scored the game winner at 93:10 with John Mellencamp and Kevin Robson assisting.

LAST TIME OUT
Brad Ring's fourth goal of the season proved to be enough for the 10th-ranked Indiana men's soccer team to clinch at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title with a 1-0 win over Penn State Sunday afternoon at Jerry Yeagley Field at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
The win puts the Hoosiers at 11-4-2 overall and 4-0-1 in league play. Penn State falls to 5-8-3, 1-2-2 Big Ten.
"I was satisfied with the way we played today," said head coach Mike Freitag. "It was a pretty physical match and we did some good things at times. I was confident that the defense was not going to allow a goal and it is important for us to have solid play defensively."
Despite outshooting the Nittany Lions by a 9-5 margin in the first half, Indiana was not able to get on the board until early in the second period. Ring's second goal in as many games came at 49:57 off an assist from Michael Roach. Roach held the ball as Ring made a run down the middle and held off his pass until just before Ring got to PSU's last line of defense. Ring ran right past the Nittany Lions and took a one-on-one shot against PSU goalkeeper Conrad Taylor, slotting home the ball for the score.
"It feels good, not just because I scored but because we ended up with a win," Ring said. "All that matters is the victory and I think we have momentum now heading into these last two matches and the Big Ten Tournament."
That was one of three shots on the afternoon for Ring, two of which were on goal. Kevin Noschang led IU with four attempts as the Hoosiers finished with 14 shots to Penn State's eight.
The match was not without a bit of drama as Indiana had to fight through an injury wave that swept through the team. The most serious-looking injury came to senior defender Greg Stevning in the first half as he landed on his knee in an awkward position. Stevning remained on the bench for the rest of the first half, but returned to play all 45 minutes in the second period.
At different points in the match, Daniel Kelly, Darren Yeagle, Kevin Alston, Brian Ackley and Eric Alexander all came off the pitch with various ailments.
"It was almost like a MASH unit out there with guys going down," Freitag said. "They were falling left and right, but our depth really showed today as guys were able to step in and take over."
Indiana had a chance to take the lead early when a scramble in front of the net off a Kelly corner kick placed the ball right at Noschang's head. The junior sent his attempt high. Overall, Noschang had five of Indiana's first six shot attempts.
Penn State's first on-goal attempt came in the first minute of the second half when Vincent Salvatico intercepted the ball about 18 yards out of the IU goal. With just IU keeper Chay Cain in front of him, Salvatico sent in an attempt that Cain was able to stop.
Treavor Gelsinger nearly tied the game in the 53rd minute as Cain misjudged his shot, thinking it was about to go wide, and the ball clanged off the right post and back into play. Frank Costigliola corralled the rebound but sent his shot wide.
The match marked the final regular-season home appearance for seniors Stevning, Charley Traylor and Chris Munroe.

RING MY BELL
 Described by head coach Mike Freitag as the heart of the team, junior Brad Ring has been masterful for the Hoosiers in their last two matches.
 Against Evansville on Oct. 24, Ring scored the goal that tied the game at 1-1 in a match that IU would go on to win 2-1.
 Playing in an important Big Ten match on Oct. 28, Ring gave IU a 1-0 lead and a share of the regular season title with his score in the 50th minute.
 Ring is second on the team in goals scored (four) and total points (11).
 He is also second on the team with two game-winning scores.
 For his efforts he was named to the College Soccer News and Soccer America Teams of the Week. It was the second time this season he has been honored by College Soccer News.

RANKING THE HOOSIERS
 The NSCAA coaches poll moved the Hoosiers up one spot to No. 10 this week.
 Indiana moved up one spot to No. 9 in this week's Soccer America poll.
 Soccer Times moved the Hoosiers up one spot to No. 8 in its Oct. 29 poll.
 College Soccer News kept Indiana in the No. 7 spot.

GIANT KILLERS
 The Hoosiers have found themselves in some big matches this season and for the most part have come out on the winning end.
 Indiana's 3-2 win at No. 4 Notre Dame on Oct. 17 gave the Hoosiers a 4-0-1 record against top-10 teams in 2007.
 IU posted wins over No. 1 UCLA (1-0), No. 10 Michigan (3-2), No. 6 Northwestern (1-0) and played No. 9 Maryland to a 1-1 tie.
 Against top 25 teams, the Hoosiers are 5-2-2, most recently playing No. 24 Ohio State to a 0-0 double overtime tie on Oct. 21.

LEAGUE DOMINATION
 Since the Big Ten began sponsoring men's soccer in 1991, the Hoosier have dominated the league.
 The Hoosiers are 77-7-8 in regular season matches, tallying nearly 30 more victories than second-place team Penn State (49).
 Indiana has never lost in its Big Ten opener, going 14-0-3 in those matches.
 IU has won 11 Big Ten tournament titles, sharing the 1995 crown with Wisconsin.
 Indiana has also been crowned regular season champion 12 times, including nine-straight seasons from 1996-2004. IU has now won back-to-back regular season titles in 2006 and 2007.
 Indiana has been the league's goals-against average leader in 14 of 16 seasons.
 IU had had a league-record 10 Big Ten Players of the Year, including the last two seasons.
 The Hoosiers have also boasted the Freshman of the Year each of the last two years.

CAIN IS ABLE
 Junior goalkeeper Chay Cain has had a solid season between the pipes for the Hoosiers so far, keeping things close in several games.
 In 1455:13 minutes of play, Cain has tallied 65 saves and allowed 12 goals for a 0.74 GAA.
 He also has seven shutouts to his credit, including a 1-0 blanking of No. 6 Northwestern on Oct. 14.
 During the season Cain had a stretch of 230:09 without allowing a goal.
 What does not show up on the box scores are several spectacular saves that Cain has come up with to keep opponents at bay.
 While facing just nine shots in a 2-0 win over Butler on Sept. 26, six of those attempts required Cain to make the save, including two spectacular shots in a three-minute span where leaping punch-overs from Cain prevented goals.
 Cain made a diving stop to his right that kept a sure-fire goal from going in against Saint Louis (Sept. 15), one of five saves on the night.
 He also recorded five saves against Creighton on Sept. 13.
 Cain had three crucial stops to hold No. 24 Ohio State scoreless in a 0-0 tie on Oct. 21.
 After allowing just one goal in a pair of wins over Northern Illinois and Rhode Island, Cain was named Most Outstanding Goalkeeper at the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament.

BALCHAN TO THE RESCUE
 It was a whirlwind debut for freshman midfielder Rich Balchan against UAB on Sept. 21.
 Getting his first career starting nod, Balchan made his presence known with his first collegiate goal.
 Balchan's score in the 59th minute tied the game at 1-all.
 His second goal of the season came at Notre Dame on Oct. 17 as his scored in the 18th minute tied the game at 1-all.
 Against Evansville on Oct. 24, it was Balchan who put home the game winner in the 68th minute.
 He also assisted on Brad Ring's goal which tied the game at 1-all.
 Balchan has appeared in 12 games this season, making 11 starts.
 He is one of two freshmen to score a goal this season, joining Michael Roach.

NO. 600
 Indiana's 1-0 victory over Northwestern on Oct. 14 marked the 600th victory in the program's storied history.
 The program's first win came on Sept. 14, 1973 against Notre Dame, a 5-1 win on the road.

OUT OF NOWHERE
 Playing in his 31st career game on Oct. 6, sophomore Kevin Alston was still searching for his first career goal.
 Unable to wait any longer, he unleashed a pair of scores, including the game winner in a 2-0 victory over No. 24 Michigan State.
 Alston's first goal was unassisted as he took on a pair of MSU defenders before unleashing a shot from about 10 yards out.
 The second score was a perfectly-designed set piece. Alston came streaking in down the left side to collect the pass, sending his shot in to the far back post.
 Alston finished the night with a team-best three shots, all of which were on goal.
 For his efforts, Alston was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week and to the Soccer America, College Soccer News and TopDrawerSoccer Teams of the Week.

TOUGH DEFENDING
 The Indiana defense has done an excellent job limiting the offensive opportunities of some of the top players in the country.
 On Sept. 29, it held U.S. National Youth Team member Peri Marosevic in check. The 2006 second-team All-Big Ten pick entered the game as the team's leader in shots attempts (21) and goals scored.
 Against the Hoosiers, Marosevic was limited to just one shot attempt.  Indiana recorded its fourth shutout of the season with a 1-0 win over UIC on Oct. 1.
 The Hoosier defense limited the Flames to just three shots on goal.  On Oct. 6, the Hoosiers were facing an undefeated Michigan State team which featured Doug DeMartin, the Big Ten's leader in shots and goals.  DeMartin got off just two shots against the Hoosiers, only one of which was on goal.
 Against No. 6 Northwestern, the Hoosiers were facing a team that ranked 11th nationally and second in the Big Ten in scoring offense. IU held the Wildcats scoreless, with team scoring leader Matt Eliason getting off just two shots.
 Ohio State's Xavier Balc was limited to just three shots as the Hoosiers shut out the 24th-ranked Buckeyes on Oct. 21.
 Indiana has recorded eight shutouts on the season and has held four of five Big Ten opponents scoreless.