Hoosiers win over St. Louis sets up rematch of 2020 College Cup final
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.
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