In what could turn out to be the greatest weekend in Wisconsin history, as far as sports go, the Badgers men's soccer team (1-0-0 Big Ten, 5-3-2 overall) can hold its heads high and say that they were part of it. An undefeated, top-10 nationally ranked, Indiana Hoosiers team (1-1-0, 6-1-2) came to McClimon Soccer Complex Sunday, and it went down hard to the Badgers 2-0.
The Badgers not only pressured hard on defense, but also had their forwards, riding the Hoosiers defense the whole game as IU tried to clear the ball. Players like sophomore forward Chris Prince and senior midfielder Josh Thiermann were incessant in their pursuit to force an IU error.
""You try to get some sort of pressure on them, you may not steal the ball but you can force them to make a pass that is maybe a yard different,"" head coach John Trask said. ""That's when [David] Caban can win the ball that's when AJ [Cochran] can win the ball.""
The Indiana attack was dormant for much of the first half, getting off few shots with few opportunities. On the other hand, Wisconsin pressured hard, getting shots from junior midfielder Tomislav Zadro as well as some tries from Nick Janus. The first half ended with a 0-0 tie.
The Badgers got their first goal in the 54th minute. Zadro's corner kick was nearly banged in by Janus whose header went off the post. Zadro nailed a bullet past the keeper from the left side of the field and put the ball into the far side of the net.
The Badgers committed a fatal foul in the box when they were up 1-0 in the 61st minute of the game. IU's sophomre midfielder Harrison Petts would take the penalty kick only to have the ball saved by sophomore goal keeper Max Jentsch.
""I was reading him trying to see where he wanted to go with the ball and just reacted to it,"" Jentsch said about the save.
That was not the only way Jentsch's presence was felt on the field, from snatching balls out of mid-air to yelling and communicating the whole game, Jentsch looked like a true star.
""Coach told me last practice that I need to be more vocal, it's just important keep everyone in check and make sure they know what they are supposed to be doing,"" Jentsch said of his performance.
The Badgers would put the nail in the coffin in the 79th minute. Zadro had yet another corner kick, this time connecting with freshman defender AJ Cochran who headed the ball into the air, Janus would finish the play rocketing the ball into the net burying it past IU keeper Luis Soffner.
""It's a great feeling because they are such a good program and team,"" Janus said about beating IU for the first time since 1995. it's an incredible win for us.""
The last time they beat Indiana, the Badgers won 2-0 as well, that year going on to win the national championship. Coach Trask was a part of that game, only he was standing on the IU sideline.
