Indiana came into Bill Armstrong Stadium on a beautiful Thursday night desperate for a win, facing a solid Minnesota team after losing and being shut out in 2 consecutive matches. The Golden Gophers, who traveled to Bloomington after a draw with Northwestern, began the match with a very impressive 5-2-2 record given the strength of their early-season schedule.
A scoreless, back-and-forth first half was highlighted by solid defense and fantastic goalkeeping. Both goalies came up huge in the first half as Sarah Martin held her ground by fending off 4 Hoosier corners and added a fantastic save on a Grace Hamm shot following a defensive lapse. A short while later, Dani Jacobson was forced into a dive and parried away a pretty attempt from a difficult angle by Tenley Senden.
After a performance by the Crimsonettes at the break, a rainy second half was underway, and Indiana came out flat-footed once again. The Golden Gophers opened the scoring against a sluggish Indiana defense in the 53rd minute, as Ava Westlund slotted home a breakaway goal following a beautiful pass from Katelyn Rigg. The Golden Gophers struck again in the 58th minute with Caroline Birdsell cleaning up a loose ball in a dangerous position off a corner.
Minnesota’s defense was fantastic throughout the second half as they fended off various opportunities from a relentless Indiana offensive unit that was determined to try to find a way back into the match. The most impressive was an incredible breakaway stop by Martin on Maggie Ledwith, followed by a miss by Olivia Albert on the rebound.
Ledwith did get herself on the scoresheet late for the Hoosiers, with her team leading fourth goal of the season on an unbelievable strike from an impossible angle in the 85th minute.
Although Ludwith ended the team's scoreless streak against a solid Minnesota team, the Hoosiers must clean up their act in a variety of ways if they want to make a push for the Big Ten tournament. Indiana will head north to Evanston to take on Northwestern on Sunday.
