Hoosiers reach College Cup again in season that has been anything but normal
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (BVM) — The Indiana University men鈥檚 soccer program is no stranger to success. And even in a season unlike any other, the Hoosiers are continuing their winning tradition.
With a 2-0 win over Seton Hall on Monday, the Hoosiers reached their 21st College Cup in program history.
It鈥檚 what we do.
— Indiana Men's Soccer (@IndianaMSOC)
Head coach Todd Yeagley has been a part of Indiana鈥檚 success for quite some time, getting to two College Cups while being coached by his father in 2003 and 2004, and leading the team back to soccer鈥檚 final four in 2012, 2017 and 2018. In 2012, the Hoosiers won a national title, and now, this team will look to do the same.
鈥淲e have to take a moment to enjoy and celebrate what many feel as though IU soccer just does,鈥� . 鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to get to these games. Hopefully there鈥檚 more to this year. We have a lot of new faces and I鈥檓 excited for them to have this experience.鈥�
The run began with a tremendous conference season for the Hoosiers, who won the Big Ten tournament over Penn State on penalty kicks. They entered the NCAA tournament with a 9-1-1 record, and the No. 3 overall seed in this year鈥檚 field.
Indiana outscored its opponents 25-3 throughout the year, led by stellar play from goalkeeper Roman Celentano, who posted shutouts in seven of the Hoosiers鈥� 11 games.聽
Offensively, the Hoosiers have spread the wealth, with nine players scoring at least one goal this season. The leader of the pack is sophomore forward Victor Bezerra, who led the Big Ten with 11 goals and 25 total points.
The dominance comes in what was a season unlike any before in college soccer. The fall season was of course moved to the spring, while the tournament has been held solely in North Carolina rather than having teams begin by playing at home. Add in following numerous COVID-19 testing protocols and regulations, and you have a season of firsts for many teams.
For the Hoosiers, a first-round bye gave them the chance to rest until opening the tournament against Northeast Conference champion St. Francis Brooklyn. Indiana defeated the Terriers 3-1 on penalty kicks to advance to the next round, where they would then defeat Marquette, 2-1. That set the stage for Monday鈥檚 quarterfinal matchup which yet again brought about some added adversity.
With just over three minutes left in the first half of Indiana鈥檚 matchup with Seton Hall, a rain storm caused a near 40-minute delay which sent both teams back to their busses in a scoreless game.
鈥淲e were on a bus for 40 minutes trying to talk to them and keep them loose,鈥� Yeagley said. 鈥淵ou do the best you can in that scenario and there was no place to go. As we got closer we just reminded them, can we take advantage of these last three minutes of the half 鈥� That goes down as a first. I鈥檝e been on buses waiting for things, maybe at halftime, but not for a delay to go to the Final Four.鈥�
The Hoosiers would indeed take advantage and come out of the delay strong, as sophomore forward Ryan Wittenbrink scored a goal to get the Hoosiers on the board with just over 90 seconds remaining in the first half.
44鈥� | Through traffic. |
— Indiana Men's Soccer (@IndianaMSOC)
鈥淭his whole year has been one new challenge after the other,鈥� Yeagley added. 鈥淲e got the goal coming out and took advantage of that. The goal was key in the sense of the shot of confidence it gave the group. When you鈥檝e got a lead in the quarterfinal, you鈥檝e got a lot of juice in you and you can taste it a little bit easier.鈥�
At the 57-minute, 45-second mark, senior Thomas Warr would score the second goal of the game, giving the Hoosiers a 2-0 lead that would never change.聽
58' | A+ celly slide. 馃憦 |
— Indiana Men's Soccer (@IndianaMSOC)
The defense continued to step up throughout the second frame, with Celentano blocking six shots on goal to earn his eighth shutout of the season.
鈥淲e asked him to be more aggressive tonight, we needed him to be,鈥� Yeagley said. 鈥淩oman just took pressure off 鈥� He just didn鈥檛 allow them to get a good look. They made it really hard and that鈥檚 a tough team to defend.鈥�
With the impressive victory, the Hoosiers are now just two wins away from their first national title since 2012.聽
鈥淭oday was not an easy day with the conditions, it was just a real gritty performance,鈥� Yeagley noted. 鈥淕etting to a College Cup is really hard to do. This one is theirs, it鈥檚 uniquely theirs and I鈥檓 really proud of them. We鈥檙e very happy to be in this position, but at the same time, the crown jewel is still out there.鈥�
Up next, they will do battle with No. 2 seed Pittsburgh on Friday night. Playing against the Panthers in 2019, Indiana is familiar with Pitt鈥檚 continually successful program, and Yeagley knows it will be a tough contest.
鈥淲e know the style they like to play and we play against a few teams that have a similar style,鈥� . I have a lot of respect for Jay Vidovich 鈥� Jay has done an unbelievable job rebranding Pitt. They鈥檙e an absolute contender as they鈥檙e showing so we鈥檙e going to have to be really good on Friday.鈥�
A chance to earn the program鈥檚 ninth national championship is now on the line for the Hoosiers. The winner of Friday鈥檚 contest will face either Marshall or North Carolina for the title on Monday.
