Indiana University
Michigan
Hoosiers Return Home to Welcome Wolverines
9/30/2021 11:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
IU Men’s Soccer Seeks Third Straight Victory in Big Ten Battle Against Michigan
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After opening Big Ten Conference play with a pair of road wins, the Indiana Hoosiers (5-2-1, 2-1-0 B1G) seek a third-straight victory when they host Michigan (4-4-1, 1-1-0 B1G) Friday at 5 p.m ET on Jerry Yeagley Field at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
The contest will be nationally televised on ESPNU, with streaming available on the WatchESPN digital platform. Live stats can be found at IUHoosiers.com. Dalen Cuff (PxP) and Devon Kerr (color analyst) will provide commentary for the match.
SETTING THE SCENE
• The Hoosiers enter the match with consecutive Big Ten road wins in hand. Indiana battled to a 1-0 victory at Michigan State on Sunday (Sept. 26) after freshman Patrick McDonald scored his first career goal in the 48th minute by redirecting a deflection from a corner kick.
• Junior goalkeeper Roman Celentano and the IU defense earned their third clean sheet of the season against the Spartans. The 19th shutout of his career, Celentano made a season-high six saves in the match.
• The Wolverines also won Sunday, dispatching Northwestern, 3-1. The victory also came as Michigan's first of the Big Ten campaign after it dropped its conference opener to No. 8 Maryland on September 17.
• Over the last six seasons, Indiana holds a record of 32-3-8 against Big Ten opponents in the regular season and have outscored conference foes 76-22 during that stretch.
ABOUT THE WOLVERINES
• Michigan is led by 10th-year head coach Chaka Dalet. He has compiled a record of 82-67-29 during his time leading the Wolverines.
• The Wolverines lead the Big Ten in corners taken (62).
• Senior attacker Kevin Buca leads Michigan in goals (4) and total points (9). The reigning Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week netted his first career hat trick in Michigan's 3-1 win over Northwestern on Sunday (Sept. 26).
• Buca has earned a point in three of Michigan's last four matches and nine total points within that span.
• Two goalkeepers have seen action for the Wolverines. Hayden Evans (3-2-0) has started five matches and owns a 1.15 goals against average and 19 saves, while Owen Finnerty (1-2-1) has a 1.42 average and nine saves.
SERIES HISTORY
• Indiana has traditionally dominated the series against Michigan and has won 23-of-29 matches played (23-3-3) all-time. The Hoosiers own a 9-2-2 home record against the Wolverines, and are undefeated in 10 straight matches spanning back to 2013 (8-0-2).
• Indiana won the first 11 series meetings before Michigan captured three of the next eight contests between 2008-2013. The Hoosiers have gone undefeated against the Wolverines in the 10 games since, recording an 8-0-2 record in that span.
• In the last meeting between the programs on March 27, 2021, Ryan Wittenbrink scored a 101st minute golden goal to push No. 7 Indiana to a 1-0 victory over the 11th ranked Wolverines.
• Two current Hoosiers have recorded goals against the Spartans: Spencer Glass (2) and Wittenbrink.
NEW FACES IN THE SCORING COLUMN
• Of IU's 10 goals this season, seven have been scored by by a student-athlete that had not recorded a collegiate goal prior to the 2021 season
• Three freshmen (Midfielder Tommy Mihalic, forward Samuel Sarver and midfielder Patrick McDonald), sophomore defender Joey Maher and redshirt junior Ben Yeagley have all opened their collegiate goal scoring accounts this season.
• McDonald is the most recent Hoosier to record his first-career goal after grabbing the lone score in Indiana's 1-0 win over Michigan State on Sunday.
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