Indiana University Athletics
Defense Anchors Indiana in Big Ten Tournament Win
11/9/2015 10:19:00 AM | Men's Soccer
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – One goal. That's all Indiana's defense asked for.
Senior forward Femi Hollinger-Janzen got it. The defense did the rest.
The Hoosiers blanked the Wisconsin Badgers 1-0 Sunday, advancing to the second round of the Big Ten Tournament behind junior goalkeeper Colin Webb's ninth clean sheet of the season. IU will play Maryland in the semi-finals Friday.
"We tell the guys we just love them to get one goal," redshirt junior defender Derek Creviston said. "That's all we want them to get. We're just trying to keep clean sheets. We know they're going to do their job if we do ours."
Wisconsin plays a man-mark defense, which oftentimes makes it difficult for a goal-scorer like Hollinger-Janzen to find space to work with the ball. The Badgers' defenders typically find a man to match up with in the final third, which gave the Hoosiers a bit of trouble finishing on scoring chances.
But all it took was one goal. Hollinger-Janzen went streaking down the field to gather in a ball from junior defender Billy McConnell to the right of the goal and snuck a shot in past the keeper near the center of the goal.
From there, the Hoosiers' defense took over.
"Wisconsin's a good attacking team," head coach Todd Yeagley said. "I don't think we allowed them to demonstrate that today, which I think was a real credit to our guys."
Wisconsin only got five shots off, only one of which Webb had to save. Their most dangerous opportunity came off a free kick in the final minute that forced Webb to lunge for what proved to be a game-saving stop before Indiana ran the clock out.
Through the run of play, Wisconsin couldn't manage to break past Indiana's back line. Even after sophomore defender Grant Lilard was forced to leave the game with a head injury—one that Yeagley clarified after the game was minor, only bleeding—the Indiana defense was stout.
Creviston said Indiana had some minor communication issues in the first half that the defense worked out quickly. At halftime, they got on each other to keep the shutout going, knowing how difficult Wisconsin was to score on.
Time and time again, Wisconsin would send long passes into the final third without sparking any noteworthy danger.
"That team has good attacking players and we limited them to a very few high percentage shots," Yeagley said. "They had five shots, but I'm not sure there was one that was dangerous. I can't remember one. They were dangerous on restarts, but through the run of play I thought we were excellent."
The win moves Indiana's winning streak to five games for the first time since 2012—the year the Hoosiers last won a national championship. Leading up to the game, Yeagley and his players spoke about feeling like they were clicking at the right time.
In Yeagley's mind, Sunday's result was only further proof.
"I like their approach. It was very business-like," Yeagley said. "This team, it's fun to coach this group."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – One goal. That's all Indiana's defense asked for.
Senior forward Femi Hollinger-Janzen got it. The defense did the rest.
The Hoosiers blanked the Wisconsin Badgers 1-0 Sunday, advancing to the second round of the Big Ten Tournament behind junior goalkeeper Colin Webb's ninth clean sheet of the season. IU will play Maryland in the semi-finals Friday.
"We tell the guys we just love them to get one goal," redshirt junior defender Derek Creviston said. "That's all we want them to get. We're just trying to keep clean sheets. We know they're going to do their job if we do ours."
Wisconsin plays a man-mark defense, which oftentimes makes it difficult for a goal-scorer like Hollinger-Janzen to find space to work with the ball. The Badgers' defenders typically find a man to match up with in the final third, which gave the Hoosiers a bit of trouble finishing on scoring chances.
But all it took was one goal. Hollinger-Janzen went streaking down the field to gather in a ball from junior defender Billy McConnell to the right of the goal and snuck a shot in past the keeper near the center of the goal.
From there, the Hoosiers' defense took over.
"Wisconsin's a good attacking team," head coach Todd Yeagley said. "I don't think we allowed them to demonstrate that today, which I think was a real credit to our guys."
Wisconsin only got five shots off, only one of which Webb had to save. Their most dangerous opportunity came off a free kick in the final minute that forced Webb to lunge for what proved to be a game-saving stop before Indiana ran the clock out.
Through the run of play, Wisconsin couldn't manage to break past Indiana's back line. Even after sophomore defender Grant Lilard was forced to leave the game with a head injury—one that Yeagley clarified after the game was minor, only bleeding—the Indiana defense was stout.
Creviston said Indiana had some minor communication issues in the first half that the defense worked out quickly. At halftime, they got on each other to keep the shutout going, knowing how difficult Wisconsin was to score on.
Time and time again, Wisconsin would send long passes into the final third without sparking any noteworthy danger.
"That team has good attacking players and we limited them to a very few high percentage shots," Yeagley said. "They had five shots, but I'm not sure there was one that was dangerous. I can't remember one. They were dangerous on restarts, but through the run of play I thought we were excellent."
The win moves Indiana's winning streak to five games for the first time since 2012—the year the Hoosiers last won a national championship. Leading up to the game, Yeagley and his players spoke about feeling like they were clicking at the right time.
In Yeagley's mind, Sunday's result was only further proof.
"I like their approach. It was very business-like," Yeagley said. "This team, it's fun to coach this group."
Players Mentioned
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Forward/Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Goalkeeper
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