The scoreboard in No. 2 Northwestern's 4-1 win over No. 11 Indiana might show dominance, but in reality it was far from that. There were times where the game got away from the Hoosiers, but they always found a way to find themselves right back in it.
“The score line I don’t think shows the game exactly,” Indiana head coach Kayla Bashore said. “I think maybe if you look at shots and corners we weren’t that far off, so it's just the ability to convert.”
Losses like these when there's so much belief that you can beat anyone turn out to be what sticks with the players the most. With three regular season games remaining and the Big Ten Tournament looming, there's still time to get back on track for Indiana before it's a win or go home situation.
“This was just a great time to play Northwestern as we go into the last part, it really shows us where we need to be and be able to push for the last part of the post season,” Bashore when asked about the final stretch of the season.
The Hoosiers, as Bashore said, “were up for the challenge,” and always put up a fight. Their first two losses of the season were against ranked opponents in Louisville and Miami (OH). They lost both of those games by one goal, then when it came the time to play their next ranked opponent which at the time was No. 2 Iowa, the Hoosiers defeated the Hawkeyes 3-1. They lost the second game to Iowa in a penalty shootout. Then they played a Michigan team that was ranked No. 13 and defeated the Wolverines 1-0.
All four of Indiana's losses have come against ranked opponents. None of them have gotten out of hand as they all have been decided by one goal. The game against Northwestern wasn’t a bad game, there's always something to clean up but the takeaway from the game is the Hoosiers didn't back down from the Wildcats.
Indiana has a lot of fight and it will be shown come tournament time for Bashore and her Hoosiers.
Oct. 23 vs. Penn State
The Hoosiers next game will be against Penn State who on the season are 8-4 and 2-1 in Big Ten play. Just like Indiana, all of their losses have come against ranked teams. It’ll be a good test to see if the Hoosiers can get back on track and forget about the Northwestern loss.
Oct. 25 vs. Maryland
Just like the Northwestern game this will be a huge contest for Indiana to see where they are before the season comes to a close. Maryland is ranked No. 1 in the country with a perfect 13-0 record. Before they travel to Indiana, they’ll have to head up to Evanston to play Northwestern. Games like this where you play really good competition can be beneficial and be used as learning curves.
Oct. 30 vs. Rutgers
For the regular-season finale Indiana will have to play Rutgers on the road in New Jersey. Rutgers currently stand at 8-6 on the season overall. A game the Hoosiers can use as momentum going into the Big Ten Tournament and work on any weaknesses they may have.
Nov. 4-8: Big Ten Tournament
Last year the Hoosiers slid in at the six seed against the three seed Iowa. Indiana lost that game 1-0. This year is a new year for the Cream and Crimson as they have had an outstanding year so far. Starting out Big Ten play 4-0 for the first time since 2005. Starting out the season 7-3 marking it the best start in the first 10 games since 2014. The Hoosiers have put everyone on notice as they could be a dark horse.
Indiana will be back in action Friday, Oct. 23 against Penn State at 3 p.m.
