Image: Olivia Smith, Hoosier Huddle
No. 5 Indiana men’s soccer opened Big Ten play with a 1-0 win over Michigan Friday night at U-M Soccer Stadium.
Stephane Njike scored the only goal of the match in the 65th minute, and the Hoosiers’ defense held strong late as Michigan pushed for an equalizer.
Indiana improves to 6-0-1 on the season and starts Big Ten play 1-0. Michigan falls to 2-2-1.
The Hoosiers came into the game looking for a response after Michigan won the last two meetings between the teams. Indiana had control for much of the night, especially in the first half, but it took until the middle of the second half to finally find the goal.
The beginning of the match was very back and forth. There were a lot of fouls early, and neither team got much going offensively in the first few minutes.
Michigan had more possession early, but Indiana’s defense held up. The Wolverines had a few quick runs down the field, but they did not create much around the box. Indiana defenders kept getting to the ball before Michigan could make anything happen.
Alex Barger had another strong game for Indiana defensively. He made multiple plays to stop Michigan’s runs and helped keep the Wolverines from getting clean looks at goal.
Indiana began to control possession more as the first half went on. The Hoosiers were moving the ball around and being patient, waiting for openings instead of forcing passes forward.
Njike and Michigan defender Patrick O’Toole had one of the best individual matchups of the night along the sideline. The two went back and forth in one-on-one battles throughout the match, with O’Toole making a few big tackles, but Njike seemed to win more of those battles and consistently found ways to create chances for Indiana.
In the 19th minute, Njike got past defenders and was fouled by Michigan’s Alex Gimple just outside the box. Oliver Moller-Jensen took the free kick, but his shot was blocked.
Njike had another chance a few minutes later, getting a shot off while being surrounded by Michigan defenders. That shot was also blocked, but it showed how active he was for the Hoosiers.
His best first half chance came in the 26th minute. Njike got a shot on net for Indiana’s first shot on goal of the match, but Michigan goalkeeper Alen Bean made a nice save to keep the game scoreless.
Indiana continued to have chances after that. Njike made a good run down the sideline and sent a cross toward Moller-Jensen, who was just short of getting to the ball for what would have been a great look at goal.
The Hoosiers had another chance off a corner kick later in the half. The ball came to Nick McHenry, who sent a volley over the goal. Charlie Heuer also had a long shot go over the net.
Indiana led 6-2 in shots at halftime and had the only shot on goal. The Hoosiers were the better team in the first half, but they still needed to find a way to finish.
The second half started slow, but Indiana started to get more chances as the half went on.
Moller-Jensen had a shot blocked in the 63rd minute. Barger also had a shot blocked, and then Heuer forced Bean to make a save in the 65th minute.
The game got chippy around that point. Easton Bogard was knocked down, and there was a skirmish after the play. Michigan’s Andrew Craig was given a yellow card after a review.
Indiana took advantage soon after.
Njike made a run through the Michigan defense and put a right-footed shot into the bottom-left corner in the 65th minute to give Indiana the 1-0 lead.
It was a deserved goal for Njike, who had been Indiana’s most dangerous player all night. He finished with three shots, two shots on goal and the goal that decided the match.
Michigan had more possession after the goal and made a push late. The Wolverines brought Grayson Elmquist back on and tried to create chances through set pieces and balls into the box.
Mroz came up big when Indiana needed him. In the 68th minute, Michigan had a free kick that looked like it was headed toward the top of the net, but Mroz got up and made a big save.
Michigan had another dangerous free kick late in the game, and Mroz came off his line to punch the ball away in the 85th minute. Indiana’s defense continued to sell out in the final minutes to keep Michigan off the board.
The Hoosiers finished with an 11-6 advantage in shots and a 3-1 edge in shots on goal. Moller-Jensen led Indiana with four shots, while Njike’s goal gave the Hoosiers the difference they needed.
Indiana will return home next Friday to host Washington at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
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