Photo credit: Indiana men’s soccer

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — One player doesn’t win a game. But special players make special plays. And special plays win games.

Sunday, Indiana’s Ryan Wittenbrink remained calm, cool and collected, sending corner kicks on target and looking for a window. In the 75th minute, a small window opened and he took advantage. Wittenbrink dribbled to the top of the box and drilled the ball into the bottom of the net.

“You kind of black out a little bit,” Wittenbrink said. “I got in the box, got a good angle and put it in. It’s exciting. I can’t describe the feeling. There’s nothing better.”

The one goal proved to be enough to give the Hoosiers a 1-0 win over St. Louis. With the win, IU (11-4-6) advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament and will host Marshall on Nov. 27 at 6:30 p.m. ET. (Time is subject to change.)

St. Louis pressured from the first whistle, pushing for the first goal. But luckily for the Hoosiers, their defenders had a stellar performance. Daniel Munie and Joey Maher were in the right place at the right time more than once, helping keep the net clean. Goalkeeper JT Harms was challenged on occasion too, but ended the night with zero saves.

SLU’s Grady Easton took the first shot of the match in the 10th minute. One minute later, Munie sent an attempt on target. Billiken goalkeeper Carlos Tofern made the save. IU’s Jack Wagoner sent the ball out seconds later. Both teams kept pushing, but ended the first half in a 0-0 deadlock.

Second half, the Hoosiers came out strong, creating chances early. But for every chance they had, St. Louis stepped in with a solution, whether it was a stop by Tofern (two saves) or a clearance by another teammate. Munie, Wagoner, Patrick McDonald, Tommy Mihalic and Karsen Henderlong all made some noise, but IU wasn’t able to capitalize until the 75th minute.

John Klein turned up the attack for SLU, recording three shots in the second half alone. After IU took the lead, the Billikens did not let up, taking four shots in the final 15 minutes. But the Hoosiers held them off, earning the 1-0 win and advancing to their eighth-straight NCAA Round of 16.

“We had a good game plan. Second half, we had a lot of the ball,” Wittenbrink said. “We had to be more calm on the ball – calm and collected. Just be smarter. I thought we controlled the second half.”

Next up

Marshall University. Who knew they even had a soccer team? Well, the Hoosiers know. They ran into Marshall in the 2020 College Cup final (which was held in spring 2021). Marshall’s international flair and mature players were too much for the Hoosiers to handle. The Thundering Herd notched an overtime goal to win the championship 1-0. It marked the one and only meeting between the two clubs.

Two seasons later, Marshall (11-3-4) continues to dominate, outscoring opponents 38-13 while recording 273 shots to 144. Matthew Bell leads the offense with 10 goals and four assists, followed by Milo Yosef (8 goals, 3 assists) and Joao Souza (7 goals, 2 assists). Nine others have scored as well.

Defensively, however, Marshall’s goalkeepers have combined for only six shutouts, compared to three for opponents. Two of Marshall’s losses were by 1-0 margins. The other was a 2-1 loss. IU also has six shutouts versus one for opponents. So. The key for the Hoosiers is to score. Score at least one. And defend like crazy. Indiana prides itself on defending. Man marking defense will be key in this rematch. After all, defense wins championships. Will it be enough to silence the Thundering Herd?

End of the road

It’s the end of the road for High Point University. The Panthers won their first NCAA Tournament game Thursday, topping North Carolina 2-0. No. 5 seed Stanford ended HPU’s Cinderella season with a 6-2 result.

The Big Ten is 1-2 in second-round action. Maryland dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 14 seed Cornell, while Ohio State battled No. 12 seed UNC Greensboro to a 1-1 draw, but fell 6-5 on penalty kicks.

Clemson topped Washington 2-0 in the 2021 College Cup final. Notre Dame and Georgetown rounded out the Final Four. Notre Dame did not make the 2022 tournament. And the other three teams all suffered defeat Sunday. UCLA topped No. 6 seed Clemson 2-1. No. 15 seed Tulsa silenced Georgetown1-0. And Creighton upset No. 2 seed Washington 3-1.

The night’s other upsets

Marshall knocked off No. 4 seed Virginia (1-1 draw , 5-3 penalty kicks). Pitt silenced No. 16 seed Akron 3-0. Western Michigan topped No. 9 seed Lipscomb 1-0. Portland upset No. 8 seed Oregon State 2-0. Vermont scored three second-half goals for a 3-2 win, sending No. 11 seed SMU home.

Follow Kathryn on Twitter: @Katknapp99.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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Photo credit: NASL

The decision to sue USSF was not unanimous.

Yesterday evening, NASL announced that the league was filing a federal antitrust lawsuit against the USSF. While we know that Rocco Commisso is in support of the litigation – based on his statement in the press release – whether or not all other owners are on board was unclear. Soc Takes has learned, via multiple sources, that the decision to move forward with the lawsuit was not unanimous. 

Soc Takes cannot confirm exactly which teams voted ‘no’ on this decision. An NASL spokesperson declined to comment on the story, citing that “All board votes are confidential.”

Speculation zone

While I cannot say this with certainty, I would posit that the most likely candidates for the “no-vote (s)” must be NCFC, Indy and Deltas.

Given that Mr. Stephen Malik is a representative to USSF and his team is currently applying for an MLS expansion bid, it is reasonable to question whether the N Carolina were in support of this litigation. Similarly, Indy XI is also one of the twelve teams looking at MLS expansion. An Indy XI spokesperson said that the team cannot comment on any litigation.

San Francisco Deltas’ future still remains uncertain. But, given CEO Helmick’s stated desire for a more collaborative existence with other leagues and the federation, it is possible that they may have been one of the ‘no’ votes as well.

Update: (3:20PM): Am informed that FC Edmonton “found out about the lawsuit over the telephone”. As such, they were not involved in the voting process.

Conclusion

A decision to take a litigious approach to ensure league survival is likely the last roll of the dice from the NASL. While it can be argued that the league was left no choice but to take this action, the lack of unity in this decision, yet again, is indicative that league owners are not in agreement about the future direction of the league.

Outside of the direction, whether or not there is a future, at all, for the league hinges heavily on this lawsuit.

You can follow Nipun on twitter at NipunChopra7. You can read the initial thoughts of Soc Takes contributors on this filing.

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CARY, N.C. — In their 50th season, the Indiana University men’s soccer team was 90 minutes away from the perfect ending to the season — a ninth national championship. The Hoosiers threw everything they had at the Syracuse Orange, fighting back twice to even the score and then heading to penalties. Syracuse edged IU 7-6 on PKs to take its first-ever title.

“What a fabulous game tonight,” IU head coach Todd Yeagley said. “A lot of emotion, a lot of great soccer, a lot of great moments. Congratulations to Syracuse. They had a great season. Penalties are difficult. Even when you win, they’re difficult. No one wants to win like that. There’s not much you can really say or do for these guys right now. They invested a lot in this season.”

And while the ending wasn’t what the Hoosiers hoped for, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t a fantastic season. When the season started, there were so many unknowns. The starting 11 hadn’t been solidified. The starting goalkeeper hadn’t been chosen. The postseason was just a blip on a radar screen. There was work that needed to be done sooner than later.

“We put a tough schedule together,” Yeagley said. “You take a leap of faith sometimes. You put them out there. You need to find out where your team is. If it means losses, then you take it. This team has done a good job evolving.”

IU dropped three regular-season matches to Clemson (3-2), Ohio State (2-1) and Kentucky (3-0). Three losses may not sound horrible, but to the Hoosiers it was unacceptable. They rarely allow three goals a match. This season, they had multiple games where that was the case, including a 3-3 draw with Portland. IU ended its regular season by falling 3-1 to Rutgers in the Big Ten championship.

But that was it. IU would not lose again. The Hoosiers overcame the odds and adversity, shutting out three teams en route to the College Cup: 1-0 vs. St. Louis, 1-0 vs. Marshall and 2-0 vs. UNC Greensboro. IU improved in every match. By the time they played UNCG, people were starting to notice.

“We defend with 11 players,” IU goalkeeper JT Harms said. “It starts with our forwards and trickles down. We have a fantastic back line. We have a great group of goalkeepers and a fantastic coach. You’ve gotta get the job done. It’s all about trusting the process.”

Yeagley agreed. “We train defending a lot. We are confident in our one vs. ones and our two vs. twos. We needed all of this tonight. Experience definitely helps. I look at our back line. They were there in 2020 vs. Marshall. They’re back. And they’re better.”

And then came Pitt. Another team with an international flare, this would be a true test for IU. Were they up to the task? Fourteen minutes in, Ryan Wittenbrink showed they were, burying a penalty kick for a 1-0 lead. In the final minute of the first half, the IU Crabb Band started to play the IU Fight Song. Just as they started to speed it up, Herbert Endeley found Tommy Mihalic, who blasted the ball into the net for a 2-0 lead. The Hoosiers held Pitt scoreless for the final 45 and headed to their 17th College Cup final. With the win, IU earned its 100th NCAA Tournament victory.

“Congratulations to Indiana,” Pitt head coach Jay Vidovich said.” They had a very successful game plan. Indiana is fantastic at man marking. They’re a very organized team.”

The story wrote itself. A perfect ending for a team that finally found its groove and made an undeniable run. Earning a win vs. Syracuse in the final would seal the deal. It would give the Hoosiers their ninth star. And this team would forever be engrained in Hoosier history.

Syracuse was in the process of writing its own perfect ending. Neither team gave up without a fight in Monday’s final. They left everything on the pitch. And while that is said time and time again, it couldn’t be more true for IU and Syracuse.

The Hoosiers started out strong, forcing shot after shot in the early minutes of the match. But Syracuse struck first. Nathan Opoku sent a perfect ball into the upper netting for the 1-0 lead in the 24^th minute. There was no stopping that ball. Nine minutes later, Patrick McDonald found the equalizer, blasting the ball into the lower right corner. One minute later, the Orange took the wind out of IU’s sails, when Curt Calov snuck another ball into the net.

With a 2-1 lead entering into the second half, Syracuse sat back a bit and watched the Hoosiers take control. IU slowed Syracuse’s attack and focused on finding the equalizer. Some bad luck and missed calls by the referee seemed to be a bad sign. But the Hoosiers kept fighting. Samuel Sarver passed the ball to Endeley, who fired his shot into the net to even the score.

“It was a physical game,” Yeagley said. “There were some challenges. Two really good teams were going at it, leaving everything out there. I know it’s cliché, but they did. Both teams were grinding. They had a lot of fight. Syracuse is a tough team. I commend them for that.”

Neither team scored in the remainder of the half or the two overtime periods, sending the game to penalty kicks. IU and Syracuse each netted four of their first five. After that, they were one for one, until IU’s Maouloune Goumballe missed his attempt and Syracuse’s Amferny Sinclair made his. The Hoosiers dropped to the ground in defeat, while the Orange celebrated.

The Hoosiers fell short of their storybook ending. But honestly, this 2022 squad has so much to be proud of. The way they battled and commanded respect speaks volumes about the players and coaching staff.

When IU faced Marshall in the 2020-21 College Cup. They looked outplayed. Marshall was full of international players. It was a tale of boys vs. men. They fought until the end but it wasn’t enough.

When asked about the international influence in collegiate soccer now, Yeagley said he welcomes it. “The international influence has been positive. It’s making American players earn it. At Indiana, we have been built on mostly American players. I’ve been told that model is not going to be effective. I disagree.”

This year, IU’s run to the College Cup was outstanding. Prior to the tournament, IU allowed 27 goals. In the five tourney games, they outscored opponents 8-2, with four shutouts and earned a 4-0-1 record. For comparison, they began the season with a 3-1-1 record, outscored opponents 9-7 and posted two shutouts. They allowed six goals in the first two games and didn’t win a game until the third.

It’s fair to say this season was a tale of two teams – the unsure, reluctant starting team and the unstoppable finishing team. They man marked. They dominated play. They passed well. Everyone was strong. If they were knocked down, they got back up. This team definitely left their mark on the program. It may not be a star, but it’s a mark. If you watched them in August and then in December, you’d say, “Wow. They’ve come a long way.” You’re correct. They did. And that speaks for itself.

“I’m just speechless,” Harms said. “I thought we deserved better today. The impact this team has had on the program will go way beyond today.”

While it’s too early to fully reflect on the campaign, Yeagley said he couldn’t be more proud.

“It would have been our ninth championship in our 50th season. We’ve done it [won a championship] in every decade. That’s what I’m most proud of. If we continue to do things well, good things will come.”

Follow Kathryn on Twitter: @Katknapp99.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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Image credit: ISC Sports Network

INDIANAPOLIS — The ISC Sports Network unveiled its Top 10 Plays of the Year list from the 2018-19 Indiana high school sports season, and some late-game footy heroics at Michael A. Carroll Stadium captured the top spot.

Chesterton High School hoisted the IHSAA Class 3A boys state title over Zionsville High School on a stunning header by Robbie Capehart off a corner kick from Bailey Arthur with a mere 30 seconds remaining in the second overtime.

The hosts of Soc Takes TV weighed in with some commentary on the game- and championship-winning tally from Union Jack Pub Broad Ripple, hosts and sponsors of Episodes 7 and 8 of the show.

Fast forward to the 53:37 mark to see the full clip.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to exclusive content and supporter benefits. Click here to become a patron today.

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