Flashback to Hoosiers’ 1st NCAA championship
Eight overtimes. Can you even imagine? After playing a regulation soccer game — 90 minutes — in Ft. Lauderdale heat and humidity, can you imagine playing in one overtime, let alone eight? Well, that’s what used to happen in college soccer. And in 1982, the Indiana Hoosiers prevailed after 159 minutes to win their first NCAA championship.
It wasn’t a surprise to those who knew the program. The Hoosiers were loaded with talent. But why on Earth was a team from the middle of Indiana so good?
So many questions, and yet one answer — Jerry Yeagley. He came to Indiana. He had a vision. He looked for the pieces. He put the puzzle together. In his 10th season at the helm, the Hoosiers finally won the title. They were the unquestioned No. 1 team in the nation.
“Certainly the first championship got the monkey off our back,” Yeagley said. “Winning in ’82 was the special feeling that I’ll never forget. Once you win a championship, you want more. You get driven. It’s not an end in itself.”
When Yeagley joined Indiana in 1963, he was hired to teach and coach the club soccer team. But in his mind this team would be so much more. The club players soon decided they too wanted more. They had a taste of success.
They were offered a trip to the postseason. But as a club team, they were on their own. Some university support could only help this program. So after years of stating its case, IU was granted NCAA status effective in 1973.
It didn’t take long before they were noticed. Indiana made its first postseason appearance one year later. And in 1976, they played in the final. The 18-0-1 team dropped a 1-0 decision to San Francisco. In 1978 and 1980, they returned to the final, again falling short to San Francisco each time.
But in 1982, all the pieces came together and the rest was history.
IU began the season on a sour note, losing three of their first four games in overtime. To top it all off, the last loss was a 3-2 overtime decision to rival San Francisco. At that point, the Hoosiers pulled themselves together. They vowed to not lose again. So — in true champion fashion — they didn’t.
“After we lost the game against San Francisco, I said we weren’t going to lose any more,” Paul DiBernardo said. “I felt the team was capable of winning it all.”
It started with a 4-2 win over Stanford. That match marked the last time a team would score more than one goal against the Hoosiers. From that point on, IU allowed four goals in the regular season while posting 12 shutouts. Heading into NCAA Tournament action, the Hoosiers (17-3-1) were confident and focused. IU shut out Evansville (1-0), Philadelphia Textile (2-0) and SIU-Edwardsville (1-0) en route to the championship match.
IU and Duke took the pitch at Ft. Lauderdale’s Lockhart Stadium ready for what would soon become a classic standoff. With the match tied 1-1, the Hoosiers took advantage of a set piece. John Stollmeyer made a run on a free kick. Gregg Thompson blasted the ball on target, which bounced once and went into the net, giving IU the 2-1 win at the 159:16 mark.
The 1982 championship started it all. IU won again in 1983, 1988, 1998, 1999 and 2003. The 2003 season was Yeagley’s last. He ended his career with a 544-1-45 record in 31 seasons and six NCAA championships. IU has since won two more titles for a total of eight. Indiana is the winningest program in the NCAA. In 47 seasons, the Hoosiers boast a 767-181-102 record.
And now you can watch a film about a little club team from Indiana blossoming into a perennial contender. On Tuesday, May 5 at 5 p.m. ET, the Big Ten Network is premiering “Worth the Wait.” It documents the Hoosiers’ climb to national prominence.
It wasn’t easy. But it was definitely worth the wait for so many.
Editor’s note: The quotes in this story come from Kathryn’s book, “The Kickin’ Hoosiers,” published in 2004.
Follow Kathryn on Twitter: @Katknapp99.
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