Indy Eleven defender/midfielder Daniel Keller. Photo credit: NASL.com

The Indy Eleven’s first meaningful match of 2017 is in the books.

After laboring through the first half against the San Francisco Deltas, a half in which neither team really separated itself beyond the obvious Deltas goal, Indy emerged as the better side after the break. Ultimately the Eleven settled for a 1-1 road draw after equalizing on rookie Tanner Thompson’s header in the 58th minute.

It wasn’t the prettiest point ever earned, but the Eleven did out-possess, out-pass, out-cross and out-shoot their West Coast counterpart. And for the second straight season, Indy prevented an expansion club from getting three points in its inaugural match.

In our first-ever edition of “Tactical Tidbits,” we take a look at Justin Braun and Gerardo Torrado’s positive influence on the pitch, as well as break down the performance of the two Indy center backs.

PREFONTAINE LIVES

Indy forward Justin Braun’s fitness and work rate on the pitch have always been sublime. Good news: He wasn’t frequenting Krispy Kreme in the offseason. Check out his heat map against the Deltas:

Braun doing what Braun does — popping up all over the attack. Photo credit: NASL.com

While his touches on the ball and passing weren’t incredibly impactful, Braun looked like the fittest player on the field. He tends to do that.

With some new faces in the attack to mesh with, Braun took it upon himself to set an example of what type of effort level is expected up front. No wonder former teammate Neil Shaffer dubbed him “Steve Prefontaine” in a beIN Sports video segment last season:

Getting to Know Indy Eleven Pkg by Beinsports-USA

Braun’s insane motor allowed him to rack up 42 touches and fire off three shots. There isn’t a cranny anywhere on the offensive side of the pitch that he won’t find.

A TALE OF TWO HALVES FOR TORRADO

Indy’s starting XI looked a little out of sync in the first half. One of the bright spots, however, was central midfielder Gerardo Torrado. He controlled the ball in tight spaces, made a few perfect short passes and showed excellent vision in gambling on a couple dangerous long balls toward the corner flag with varied success.

El Borego’s pass distribution. Photo credit: NASL.com

Ironically, in the second half when Indy played better Torrado didn’t seem to play as well. His final numbers versus the Deltas weren’t eye-popping, and his Opta-registered 31 of 44 accurate passes didn’t necessarily do his performance justice, either.

He also played 50 percent of his passes forward — a severely underrated attribute he displayed last year that he appears to have carried over to 2017. Torrado understands that playing the ball backward or laterally is generally a last-resort option to maintain possession; he picks his head up and looks forward upon receiving the ball.

Torrado shouldn’t have been in Man of the Match consideration, but he was rock solid in the first half when his teammates came out showing season-opening jitters. His vision, technical ability and field generalship helped Indy survive a rough patch and overcome the 1-0 deficit.

“MIDFIELDER” SHINES AT CENTER BACK

Photo credit: NASL.com

With Lovel Palmer nursing a mild knock, Eleven coach Tim Hankinson went with a center back pairing of Kwame Watson-Siriboe and Daniel Keller. Watson-Siriboe was signed to be a starter — no surprise there. But Keller projected to be more of a utility defensive midfielder this season, and was even listed as such on the official team roster after exclusively playing defense last season.

Hankinson might want to reconsider the position change after Keller turned in a very efficient, steady performance in the opener. The veteran completed a stellar 40 of 44 passes to go with five duels won and five clearances among his 55 total touches in the match.

He actually outplayed Watson-Siriboe, who failed to block a cross that led to the Deltas goal and produced zero tackles or duels won across his 34 touches. It wasn’t all bad for Watson-Siriboe though, as he did have four clearances and two interceptions.

Not too much stock can be put into one game, but Keller settled into his old digs quite comfortably among the back four. Don’t be surprised if Hankinson deploys Keller as a defender way more than a midfielder this season, despite what the club’s website says.

Follow Kevin on Twitter @KJboxing.

Related

Photo credit: Kevin Johnston/Soc Takes

INDIANAPOLIS — The second day of the Mayor’s International Futsal Cup is in the books. Here are the Day 2 results, as well as the current leaders of each group:

Sunday, Sept. 3

MEN’S

Bosnia and Herzegovina 6, Spain 3 Honduras 9, Palestine 1 Bosnia and Herzegovina 8, Montenegro 3 Guatemala 8, Brazil 6 Montenegro 6, Guatemala 3 Nigeria 14, Spain 2 Brazil 9, Nigeria 1 USA 4, Iceland 4 Jamaica 7, China 0 USA 13, China 3 El Salvador 6, Iceland 1 El Salvador 4, Peru 4 Jamaica 4, Peru 2 Japan 1, Costa Rica 0 Mexico 7, Costa Rica 0 Cuba 3, Vietnam 2 Netherlands 5, Venezuela 1 Bahrain 11, Germany 0 Palestine 7, Germany 1 Bahrain 9, Netherlands 3 Honduras 8, Venezuela 1

Iran 13, Japan 2

Current group leaders: Montenegro (A), Bosnia (B), Peru (C), El Salvador (D), Cuba (E), Mexico (F), Bahrain (G), Honduras (H)

WOMEN’S

Chile 6, Puerto Rico 3 Puerto Rico 9, USA 1 Serbia 4, Iceland 0 Chile 5, Mexico 3 Mexico 7, Serbia 1

Iceland 5, USA 3

Current group leaders: Chile (I), Mexico (J)

The action resumes at 9 a.m. today, with the women’s championship match scheduled for 3:30 p.m. and the men’s set for 4:30. Click HERE for the full schedule of play.

***

Soc Takes is on Patreon. Get access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

Junior forward Halle Stelbasky | Photo credit: Butler women’s soccer

INDIANAPOLIS — The stats don’t even count yet, but Halle Stelbasky isn’t wasting any time finding her midseason form. The Butler striker scored to help carry her team to a 3-1 win against an overmatched Morehead State side Friday afternoon at the Sellick Bowl.

The Bulldogs were dominant from the start, but the final product often lacked — early on at least. Some sloppy finishing led to a few flubbed shots over the crossbar.

A wild scrum in front of the net in the 15th minute nearly gave Butler its first goal, but Morehead State somehow managed a clearance after the ball ping-ponged around the six-yard box. Preseason All-Big East selection Paige Monaghan dribbled past the Eagles defense minutes later, but again the Bulldogs couldn’t find the back of the net.

Later in the half, forward Breann Pempek found herself with a golden opportunity unmarked in front of goal, but couldn’t make clean contact on the ensuing shot.

The Dawgs finally broke through in the 34th minute. Caitlyn DiSarcina got in behind the defense and put a shot on frame that required a save, and Pempek redeemed herself by tapping in the rebound.

Photo credit: Soc Takes

The Bulldogs added a second goal in similar fashion — on a rebound — only this time Stelbasky was the one there to slot it home. The goal was her third of the preseason; she recorded a brace in Butler’s 3-2 exhibition win against defending Big Ten champion Northwestern on Tuesday.

Butler extended the lead to 3-nil on a beautiful cross and header from right midfielder Elena Gutlove to junior Gabrielle Lemkuil.

The Eagles pulled one back in the 89th minute on a volleyed golazo by midfielder Samantha Damante after a pinpoint service from Tia Williams. But the damage was already done and the Bulldogs held on for the 3-1 victory.

With exhibition play wrapped up, Butler will open its regular season with a tough road test at Notre Dame next Friday.

***

You can follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

Soc Takes is on Patreon. Get access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

Photo: fccincinnati.com

The US Open Cup returns to Nippert Stadium where FC Cincinnati will host Louisville City FC on Wednesday May 31. The United Soccer League rivals are familiar with each other, but this will be their first meeting in the USOC. Both teams advanced to round three of America’s famed tournament on May 17th. FC Cincinnati beat AFC Cleveland 1-0 in the second overtime period and Lou City cruised to a comfortable 9-0 victory against the Tartan Devils.

The River Cities Derby gets its name from the Ohio River which links the two cities just over 100 miles apart. It carries a lot prestige on it’s own, but Wednesday’s match will offer more than the usual implications for these regional rivals. The winner has hosting rights in round four. The opponent is already set to be the Columbus Crew of MLS and that USOC match will take place on June 14th. For FC Cinci, it would be their third home match in this year’s tournament. For Lou City, it would mean the first MLS team to play Slugger Field in meaningful competition.

Wednesday will be the second time the Coopers of Louisville have journeyed to the Queen City this year. The 1-1 scoreline masked a hard fought battle between two competitive sides. There were six separate bookings on April 22nd but none more brutal than the spikes up challenge from FCC forward Djiby Fall. He was awarded a straight red in the 87th minute but the controversy grew in the scuffle that immediately followed.

Photo: EM Dash Photography

A special review panel determined that Djiby Fall had also bitten Niall McCabe in the pushing and the shoving. An additional five game suspension was tacked on to the mandatory single game suspension for the red-carded challenge. Fall is still unable to participate in USL competition, but USOC is not required to suspend Fall so he remains eligible for the game this week.

Before the suspension, the 32-year-old from Senegal had been leading the USL with 6 goals in 6 games and played all but 40 minutes. April 22 wasn’t that long ago. It’s unlikely anyone has forgotten.

This has to be the match to watch in round three and Fall has to be the player to keep an keen eye on. Nippert stadium has been drawing massive crowds. There are familiar rivals with a bit of bad blood between them. There is prize money from the tournament, bragging rights for these two young clubs. They are third and fourth in the USL Eastern Conference standings, but that doesn’t matter right now. The USOC will take priority on Wednesday.

The match starts at 7pm.

Follow @SocTakes for more gameday coverage and follow me @AGunyon

Related

The beautiful game is heading to the Magic City. A story that was initially revealed on Twitter by Soc Takes staff became official on Aug. 8. Recently, we spoke to Birmingham-USL VP and Birmingham Hammers co-founder, Morgan Copes, about how #USL2BHM came to be, and their plans for the 2019 season.

Copes and Outland at the unveiling of Birmingham-USL. Photo credit: USL

Magic

Birmingham announced USL as its first 2019 expansion team (the league subsequently announced Vegas and Austin as well), and Copes explained why the city was a strong destination for professional soccer:

“Soccer can be played year round here, and the people of Birmingham are very knowledgable about the sport. Nation-wide, parents are becoming more wary about the head injuries in other sports, and that’s one of many reasons why more and more kids are sticking with soccer, including here in Birmingham,” Copes explained.

Much like the city of Birmingham, Copes has his own connection to the beautiful game. Having played in college, Copes explained that somehow soccer has always drawn him back in. “When you’re not involved, there’s a piece of you that’s missing,” Copes said, “Moving to Birmingham, and realizing it’s a city with a million-plus folks. It’s more than enough to sustain a franchise.  Birmingham hasn’t had a top-tier team, but teams that are here have been well supported by fans.”

Elaborating on the identity and interest of the ownership group, Copes said, “Our ownership group (Jeff Logan, co-owner of Birmingham Barons, James Outland, managing partner at New Capital Partners and Lee Stylsinger III, CEO of Altec Inc.) has local ties to the city. I think there is a celebratory interest (from them) in having another sport team in town,” Copes added.

“There’s been some push-back from those who believe in a promotion-relegation system, who want to see promoted rather than quote ‘buy it.’”

Conversations with both leagues

At a time when there were two-D2 leagues, Copes admits that NASL was at least an option for the current ownership group. “Our ownership group had some conversations (with NASL), but the details aren’t for me to discuss. Personally, I don’t like the split season, and again, this is my opinion, but it seems to me that NASL is still trying to go head on with MLS for D1.”

Copes explained that the “stability” and “business model” of the USL were key reasons why the USL was ultimately a better choice for them. “It’s been a two-plus year process for our ownership group. The USL has invested intelligently and is expanding at a good rate. We’re centrally located with Nashville, the Carolina teams, Louisville and Cincinnati in proximity to Birmingham. It makes sense.”

The Magic City Brigade

“You’re only as successful as your fans allow you to be. If you don’t have fans, you don’t have a team. They are a super passionate group of individuals who show up rain or shine,” Copes said of the passionate supporter group.

When asked if there was ever a possibility of an USL-Birmingham team without the involvement of the Birmingham Hammers (and, by extension, the magic city brigade), Copes clarified, “There’s always the possibility of it happening without us, but, we trusted the USL to keep us involved.”

However, Copes admits that the support from the Hammers fans isn’t unanimous. “There’s been some push-back from those who believe in a promotion-relegation system, who want to see promoted rather than quote ‘buy it’. We think we’ve more than earned that. But, we’ve never pushed back , we’ve (The Hammers) always said in our mission statement that we wanted to bring professional football to the Magic City. That’s something to celebrated, not condemned or damned.”

Expectant fans in attendance at the Birmingham-USL announcement. Photo credit: Brandon Smith

The future

While the USL announcement is very exciting (Copes says that their focus is on 2019), the immediate future includes a PDL season in 2018. “We have to focus on the PDL next year,” said Copes. The long list of things to accomplish include hiring coaches, signing players and deciding on a name . When asked about a name, Copes reiterated what he said on Jason Davis’ United States of Soccer – “we’re working on it.”

While there are no players nor technical staff, Copes is already throwing down the gauntlet for 2018’s USL debutants. “We will beat Nashville to that first trophy, trust me on that.” Soc Takes reached out to Nashville-USL staff but did not receive a comment at time of publishing.

Whether or not they beat Nashville to that trophy, USL-Birmingham remains a feel-good story, about a group of men who whimsically decided to start an NPSL team, and within a few years helped bring a professional team to Birmingham.

“It brings a whole new meaning to ‘hold my beer and watch this.’“

“We will beat Nashville to that first trophy, trust me on that.”

***

Follow Nipun on Twitter: @NipunChopra7.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

Image credit: U.S. Soccer

Following the United States’ failure to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, several days of robust discussion took place regarding changes that need to be made to the way the sport of soccer is governed and marketed in the United States. Most of the conversations centered on familiar themes — promotion and relegation, solidarity payments, training compensation, the structure of the development programs, the lack of synergy and cooperation in the professional league “pyramid,” so on and so forth. But after a few days of hand-wringing, business as usual resumed and talk of systematic changes for a nation that has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the sport in the last decade but failed to qualify for a World Cup because it finished behind the likes of Panama and Honduras in qualifying simply vanished for the most part.

Perhaps the most important issue from where this observer sits wasn’t raised until USSF presidential candidate and former playing great Eric Wynalda brought it up in an interview with ESPN FC: calendar change. Wynalda has long advocated a shift in schedule for the U.S. pro leagues, something that usually gets met with dismissive retorts of “we can’t do that!”

Wynalda couched his position on the very logical premise that the MLS Cup Playoffs now compete with the end of college football season, heart of the NFL season and World Series. MLS Cup itself has suffered from direct competition — in 2012, David Beckham’s final game with the LA Galaxy took place at the very same time as the SEC championship game between Alabama and Georgia. The NASL and USL have had postseason and championship matches going head-to-head the last few seasons with critical NFL and college football games.

Those who have pushed back against any discussion of calendar change have long done so aggressively and by using some points that appear logical:

1. It’s too cold to play in the northern part of the country during the winter.
2. Pro soccer will suffer or perhaps even die if forced to compete with American football.

I have to say I have never understood the second premise, as my example above illustrates that MLS as well as the lower divisions have left their business end of the season to run concurrent with the heart of the American football season. Currently MLS kicks off the first full weekend of March, the final weekend of the NCAA basketball regular season, and spends the next three weeks competing with conference tournaments and then the NCAA tournament. MLS’ fifth weekend of the season goes head-to-head with the Masters.

Avoiding conflicts with major sporting events of the American variety is unavoidable for professional soccer. To claim somehow the current calendar is the only good option is naive and perhaps even sinister, especially when you consider a shift in the calendar will allow the most important pro matches of the season to be contested without competition from the NFL or college football.

Below are the reasons why a calendar shift should occur, but first let’s discuss how we can work around the first and only legitimate concern about the weather in the north.

Russia’s Premier League recently shifted its calendar from one almost identical to MLS’ to a July to May format with a long winter break. If Russia, with its frigid arctic winters, can change its calendar to something closer to the international norm, we certainly can. Nobody is suggesting the United States professional leagues play through the winter like England’s Premier League does — much like the obstinance many in the pro game here show toward any discussion of a calendar shift, English insiders resist taking a winter break due to traditions, which have arguably cost the nation any real shot at winning major international tournaments.

7° F… a yearly reminder why playing the American soccer season on the European calendar is far from advisable.

— WrongSideOfThePond (@wrongsideofpond) January 7, 2017

When you talk to those from abroad who have worked in the United States off the record, many complain about the schedule. Perhaps its familiarity with playing football at a certain time of the year that lends itself to these attitudes. But dig deeper and you get answers like “it’s tough to train optimally in the hottest months of the season,” and “I could get certain players here but cannot because of the schedule.” I’ve spoken to American-born general managers in the past who’ve said they’ve lost out on players due to the calendar, but also some who landed players because of when MLS, the NASL or USL were playing. All of these critiques hold water with me. When you consider we are moving more and more developing players into the pro league system, it becomes critical that youngsters are given the best possible training experience — having practices routinely cut short or cancelled outright because of rain and heat is a real problem. Similarly, these are problems during the winter in northern climates that will have to be worked around.

Ultimately, it’s a positive thing to align transfer windows and logical to not be playing or training in the hottest months of the year. Moving Americans abroad to European clubs, where they’ll further their growth as professional players, is that much easier if the domestic club is not in the middle of its season. It’s also logical from the standpoint of competition because the business end of the season, when you want the most eyeballs on the TV, does not coincide with the immovable object of the NFL and college football.

Love the insight from @EricWynalda on the soccer calendar and how it impacts the American player

— Roy A Tewell III (@Roy_Tewell) November 4, 2016

In terms of maintaining fan support, let’s keep in mind elite youth soccer clubs tend to play on the international calendar as well, from August or September to April or May. In my days working in the NASL, we’d see some significant attendance dips in weaker markets when youth soccer season was out and the summer heat was in. We as a league also had numerous weather delays which revolved around player safety issues related to summer thunderstorms. Weather issues tend to plague matches held in the Southeast during summer and even some scheduled games in the Midwest have experienced serious weather delays.

The difficulty of scheduling games in some northern cities needs to be worked around with a winter break and perhaps some more scheduling flexibility. However, when we hear arguments that cities in Canada cannot play on a summer calendar, I personally feel we cannot make decisions about our pro soccer system based on the considerations of guest teams from another country. Canada’s system eventually has to be delinked from the United States’ pro leagues for the good of both nations’ national teams, something I will explore further in a forthcoming Soc Takes piece.

Whether we shift the calendar or not, we need to have the conversation. Missing the World Cup is a deadly serious event in terms of the sustainability of the sport in this country and if we aren’t willing to stand up and have adult conversations, we deserve our ultimate fate and failure.

Follow Kartik on Twitter: @kkfla737.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

Image credit: National Futsal Premier League

A new amateur futsal league is coming to the Great Lakes area — and quite soon at that.

The National Futsal Premier League (NFPL) has officially launched with four founding members: the Ann Arbor Mudpuppies, Lansing City Futsal, ABK Futsal and FC Tryzub. The league will begin play in January 2019.

ABK Futsal is based in Grand Rapids and FC Tryzub in Chicago, giving the league three founding clubs from Michigan and one from Illinois. Anywhere from two to four more teams are expected to join the NFPL before it kicks off.

“We have been in discussions with several other markets and will either end up at six or eight teams for this inaugural season,” Mudpuppies co-owner and NFPL board member Bilal Saeed confirmed.

The league’s other board members include Drew Ducker, also a co-owner of the Mudpuppies, and Lansing City’s Jeremy Klepal. Ubusuku Abukusumo, a former Columbus Crew defender from 1997-99, will serve as the league’s first-ever commissioner.

Not wanting to overextend while also striving to keep travel costs reasonable, the NFPL plans to keep things regional, at least in the short-term.

“Sustainability is one of the league’s highest priorities,” Abukusumo said. “We believe the best opportunity to create an environment conducive to a sustainable league and its clubs is by starting the league with a regional, Midwest focus. … If, however, an opportunity arises to expand beyond our Midwest region that allows us to continue our vision and maintain sustainability, then we would look at it closely.”

The Ann Arbor Mudpuppies and ABK Futsal face off in a 2018 match. Photo credit: Ann Arbor Mudpuppies

As for the NFPL’s structure, beyond the aforementioned board of directors and commissioner, the league will operate as a tax-exempt entity with no centralized ownership.

“We are a nonprofit league that has a commissioner and a board, but no ownership,” Saeed explained.

For more information on the league or to inquire about launching an NFPL franchise, visit the league’s website — which is already live — at NationalFutsalPremierLeague.com.

“Futsal is a fantastic game that we believe will appeal to a majority of U.S. sports fans,” said Abukusumo. “We’re honored to be a part of its growth and we’re excited to showcase this highly entertaining product in the Midwest.”

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

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

Related

Reuters Media Express

Obviously, not every move a club makes jumps off the page as a needle mover. But sometimes the low-key, unheralded signings can have a sizable impact a couple months into the season or down the stretch.

The New York Red Bulls‘ recent addition of right back Michael Amir Murillo via loan reeks of such a scenario.

Deportes RPC first broke news of the loan earlier this month, which was finally confirmed by the club on Saturday. Within hours of the announcement, Murillo was practicing with his new teammates — and making coach Jesse Marsch gush.

“Michael fit right in,” Marsch told NewYorkRedBulls.com’s Andrew Vazzano. “I thought he had a great day and held his own. He showed all the qualities that we thought he had.

“We like guys that come here and are up for the challenge and want to be put in difficult situations. When we evaluated him as a person, we think he’s like that.”

Felipe and Murillo talking through today’s first drill. #RBNY pic.twitter.com/90g2K8RshZ

— Andrew Vazzano ⚽️ (@AVRBNY) February 18, 2017

Murillo is unlikely to immediately unseat projected starting right back Sal Zizzo, but could play his way into consistent minutes if given the opportunity. Even if he doesn’t, the 21-year-old Panamanian international with nine caps to his name will have both the time and the opportunity to grow; the Red Bulls tacked on an option to buy at the end of the one-year loan deal, according to Deportes RPC.

While Murillo won’t blow you away with regular dynamic runs up the flank, he’s an extremely sound, efficient footballer. His technical ability surpasses that of most “bench” defenders. The Harrison newcomer boasts a delicate first touch, and knows how to quickly peek his head up to pick out a midfielder or forward checking back to the ball. More often than not, his passes arrive at their desired destinations: the feet of his teammates.

Signed as a right back, Murillo is also quite capable of filling in at center back or defensive midfield, where he often played at his previous stop in Panama’s top flight with San Francisco FC. With Marsch intent on lining up in a 4-2-2-2 this season, Murillo seems like the ideal Swiss Army knife to have available on the bench.

As far as weaknesses, Murillo lacks elite recovery speed and probably won’t dart into the final third too often. He also needs to fill out his lean 6-foot frame in order to handle the size and physicality of MLS attackers.

After a weird offseason highlighted by shakeup in the club’s front office and the loss of one of its best players and captain in Dax McCarty, Red Bulls supporters can find at least a glimmer of solace in Murillo, an excellent young depth signing with upside.

Related

Photo credit: Brent Smith/Butler women’s soccer

INDIANAPOLIS — This whole clean sheet thing has become a habit for the Butler women’s soccer team. Co-head coaches Tari St. John and Rob Alman aren’t complaining.

Fresh off winning some impressive accolades, Butler goalkeeper Hannah Luedtke continued her dominance in net in the team’s 1-0 win over Indiana State on Sunday. She wasn’t called into action too often, making just two saves, but commanded the box well and helped keep the defense organized in front of her.

Luedtke, a redshirt sophomore, was not only named Big East Goalkeeper of the Week, but also made Top Drawer Soccer’s Team of the Week for her performances last week.

The shutout against the Sycamores was the Bulldogs’ sixth in a row to coincide with their six-game winning streak. It’s safe to say Luedtke and the back line in front of her are meshing well.

The goal came on a long header in the 71st minute by Breann Pempek, assisted by Madison Toth and Amanda Kowalski. Pempek’s consistent play up top earned her Big East Offensive Player of the Week honors, the conference announced Monday.

After recording a game-winner for @ButlerWSoccer on Sunday, Breann Pempek is the #BIGEASTwsoc Offensive Player of the Week! pic.twitter.com/g6Rn0wcEXC

— BIG EAST Conference (@BIGEAST) September 18, 2017

Despite grabbing the victory and outshooting Indiana State 14-4, overall it wasn’t one of Butler’s sharpest performances of the season. The Bulldogs only put six of those shots on frame and overall lacked polish in the final third.

But the Sycamores (4-4-1) only put two shots on goal themselves, which won’t get the job done against Butler’s exceptional goalkeeping and defending on most nights. One tally was all it took Sunday for the home side.

The Bulldogs (6-1-1) will host Chicago State (1-9) on Thursday, then begin Big East play Sunday at home against Marquette (7-2-1).

***

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related

Photo credit: Butler women’s soccer

INDIANAPOLIS — With just one goal and one assist on the season entering Sunday’s match against St. John’s, Butler attacker Elena Gutlove’s stats weren’t quite doing her stellar play justice. The right-sided forward has done many influential things to spark the Bulldogs offense, but for whatever reason it hasn’t translated into showing up in the box score often.

That was then; this is now.

Gutlove not only displayed the exceptional hold-up play and off-the-ball runs she’s known for Sunday at the Sellick Bowl, but also served up an assist to teammate Paige Monaghan. The lone Butler tally carried the hosts to a 1-0 win over Big East foe St. John’s.

Butler Wins 1-0 vs. St. John’s! #GODAWGS pic.twitter.com/Qo6Rm2AIZo

— Butler Womens Soccer (@ButlerWSoccer) October 8, 2017

Butler asserted itself early on, bossing play for the first 25 minutes while St. John’s struggled to link play between its midfielders and forwards. Several poor balls and mistimed runs thwarted the Red Storm’s chances of gaining momentum.

St. John’s eventually settled down and strung some possession together. The visitors nearly opened the scoring late in the first half, but hit the woodwork on their best scoring opportunity. Butler returned the favor moments later when defender Julia Leonard ripped a shot into the underside of the crossbar that almost bounced in.

The Bulldogs finally broke through in the final minute of the first half to go on top 1-0. Monaghan and Gutlove worked a lovely give-and-go from midfield into the right corner, where Monaghan attempted a long cross that drifted in on frame and ended up in the back of the net.

Here’s a replay of the goal at about the 55:10 mark of the video, courtesy of Butler’s Facebook page:

St. John’s created a couple quality chances down the stretch, but the combined goalkeeping of Hannah Luedtke and Leonie Doege, and an in-sync back line locked down Butler’s impressive 12th clean sheet of the season. The win kept the Bulldogs undefeated in conference play at 3-0-2 and moved them to 10-1-3 overall.

Several other Butler players turned in quality shifts besides Gutlove and Monaghan, including Kyra Cooke, Shannon McDevitt, Halle Stelbasky and Breann Pempek.

Butler will head to Chicago on Saturday for a Big East clash with DePaul.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.

Support Soc Takes on Patreon for access to patron-only Soc Takes Pod episodes, exclusive written content and tier rewards. Click here to become a patron today.

Related