Indiana University Women’s Soccer holds off Ball State 2-1
The Indiana University Women’s Soccer team improved to 2-0 on the season with 2-1 win over the Ball State Cardinals Tuesday Night at the Briner Sports Complex in Muncie, Indiana. The Hoosiers will have a week off before Hosting Wright State next Thursday Afternoon at 4:30pm at Bill Armstrong Stadium. Ball State is 1-1 on the season and will travel to Bulter on Thursday. Indiana scored 2 goals in the first 7 minutes of the match. Sophomore Midfielder Kennedy Neighbors scored her second goal in as many games at the 3:56 mark with the assist to Layla Sidrah who assisted on Neighbors game winning goal last Thursday against Tennessee. Freshman Haden Vleck scored her first career goal in just her second game at the 6:18 mark with Sidrah getting her third assist in just her second career game. Ball State got one back at the 28:08 when Addie Chester went lower left to get it back Indiana Goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg to make it to 2-1 as neither team found the back of the net in the second half.
Indiana outshot Ball State 11-9 as the Hoosiers had 6 shots on goal to 3 for the Cardinals. Ball State had 5 corner kicks to 3 for the Hoosiers. The teams combined for 23 fouls as Indiana had 12 to 11 for Ball State. Both teams were called for offsides once. Indiana Goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg made 2 saves and got her 24th career win between the pipes which passes Shauna Daugherty who played from 2000-03 for fourth to a tie for third with Shannon Fowler who played from 2010-13 on the all-time list. Bethany Kopel had 30 wins from 2017-22 and Merit Elzy is the school’s all-time leader with 35 wins between the pipes from 1994-97. Grace Konopatzki started in goal for the Cardinals and played the first half making 2 saves and giving up 2 goals while facing 6 shots. Abby Jenkins started the second half and made 2 saves and did not allow a goal while facing 5 shots. Ball State played both Goalkeepers in their win over Purdue Fort-Wayne splitting up the halves. Indiana leads the all-time series 2-1-2 and this was their first trip to Muncie in the Regular Season as Former IU Men’s Soccer Player Josh Rife is the Head Coach at Ball State and the teams played exhibition matches twice in the last year.
Indiana University Men’s Soccer tops Big Ten poll among several preseason honors
Big Ten Men’s Soccer coaches unanimously selected Indiana to repeat as Big Ten Champions as the conference office published its 2024 season preview Tuesday. The team distinction comes alongside a laundry list of individual preseason honors announced Tuesday between the Big Ten and Top-Drawer Soccer. Three members of IU’s 2024 roster earned first-team All-Big Ten honors last season: Patrick McDonald, Samuel Sarver and Justin Weiss. All three were named Big Ten Players to Watch Tuesday in the conference preview. The trio also featured in the Top-Drawer Soccer Preseason Top 100 list. Five Hoosiers earned selection in the ranking – tied for the most nationally. Sarver (No. 13), McDonald (37), sophomore Alex Barger (45), Weiss (60) and sophomore Collins Oduro (80) represent IU in the list. Top Drawer Soccer also honored Sarver in its Preseason Best XI second team. The senior returns after an All-America campaign in 2023, leading IU in goals (8), assists (6) and points (22). He also ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten in goals points and game-winning goals (5). With 19 goals and 14 assists, Sarver has totaled 52 points in his career. Last season he became the 50th Hoosier to reach the 50-point milestone and the first junior to do it since Nikita Kotlov in 2012.
Indiana now has two of the conference’s leading producers from 2023 after Weiss joined the program as a graduate transfer. Behind Sarver, Weiss finished third in the conference in points with 21 during his senior first-team All-Big Ten season at Northwestern. McDonald returns after earning a third-round selection by Toronto FC in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft. The senior midfielder has totaled six goals and eight assists in his career and established career highs in both categories (three goals, five assists) last season. Barger and Oduro will look to build on freshman momentum after playing important roles from the jump in 2023. Oduro was one of two Hoosiers to start all 24 matches last season, contributing five goals and two assists. Barger started 23 matches while featuring in the full-back positions.
Indiana University Men’s Tennis Freshman Karan Raghavendra receives the Bill Talbert Junior Sportsmanship Award
Indiana Freshman Karan Raghavendra was announced as a recipient of the Bill Talbert Junior Sportsmanship Award by the United States Tennis Association (UTSA). Raghavendra was one of two total winners of the award, as Natasha Rajaram was also selected. “Natasha and Karan are incredible tennis players, both on and off the court,” said Craig Morris, Chief Executive, Community Tennis, USTA. “They both epitomize what great sportsmanship is all about and we look forward to seeing what the future holds for them.”
Each award winner must be a junior player who exemplifies the finest qualities of sportsmanship in tournament play as well as one who maintains the finest traditions of the great sportsmen/women of tennis, past and present. The award is given in honor of 1967 Hall of Famer Bill Talbert, who was highly regarded for his high standards of sportsmanship and is presented in conjunction with the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Raghavendra and Rajaram were presented with their awards at the USTA National Championships taking place in Kalamazoo, Mich. and San Diego, Calif., respectively, in the beginning of August.
Raghavendra, a Dublin, Calif. native, will begin his freshman year next week for the Hoosiers. He comes to Bloomington as the No. 43-ranked prospect in the country for the 2024 recruiting cycle. He is a graduate of Laurel Springs School and intends to major in information systems.
Taylor University Women’s Soccer Set to Host a Pair of Fall ID Camps
Taylor Women’s Soccer is set to host a pair of Fall ID Camps. The camps will be held on Friday, September 20th and Friday, November 1st from 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm. The camp will be open to high school girls, grades nine through 12, and will cost $100 per camper. Campers will have the opportunity to train with current members of the TU women’s soccer program, while also receiving technical training from the coaching staff. Additionally, all campers will receive a t-shirt, and parents will be able to attend a meeting with coach Scott Stan to discuss the college recruiting process. For additional information on the camp, please contact head coach Scott Stan at 765-998-4596 or via email at jfstan@taylor.edu.
Camp Schedule 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM — Registration 3:30 PM – 4:15 PM — Technical Work 4:15 PM – 4:45 PM — College Recruiting Meeting for Parents 4:45 PM – 6:00 PM — Small-Sided Games
Three Players Begin their Rehab Assignments with the Indianapolis Indians
The Pittsburgh Pirates Tuesday announced that Infielder Nick Gonzales and right-handed Relievers Colin Holderman and Carmen Mlodzinski will begin their respective rehab assignments with the Indianapolis Indians as they begin a six-game series at Huntington Park, home of the first-place Columbus Clippers, tonight at 6:15. Holderman (March 29-April 11) and Mlodzinski (April 9) are beginning their second rehab stints with the Indians this season. Gonzales becomes the 17th major leaguerehabber assigned to Indy on 22 separate stints this season, joining utilityman Ji Hwan Bae, infielder Alika Williams, outfielder Joshua Palacios, catchers Joey Bart, Henry Davis, Jason Delay and Yasmani Grandal, southpaws Ryan Borucki, Bailey Falter, Marco Gonzales and Martín Pérez, and right-handers Jared Jones, Quinn Priester, Hunter Stratton, Holderman and Mlodzinski.
Gonzales, 25, was placed on the 10-day injured list on July 28 with left groin discomfort. He began the season on Indianapolis’ Opening Day roster and hit .358 (43-for-120) with a .431 on-base percentage and 1.039 OPS in 30 games before being recalled by Pittsburgh on May 10. Through his last game played with Indy on May 8, he ranked among International League leaders in batting average (1st), doubles (1st, 14), runs (1st, 33), hits (T-1st), extra-base hits (T-3rd, 20), OPS (4th), total bases (T-4th, 73), slugging percentage (5th, .608) and OBP (7th). In 65 big-league games, he hit .258 (64-for-248) with 20 extra-base hits and 39 RBI. He logged eight game-winning RBI from May 10-July 23, tied for the fifth-most in MLB. The infielder was one of Indianapolis’ most reliable batters in 99 games during the 2023 season, hitting .281 (106-for-377) with a team-leading 75 runs and eight triples, the latter of which also tied for most in the IL. Gonzales was selected by Pittsburgh as the seventh overall pick of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of New Mexico State (Las Cruces) University. He had his contract first selected by the Pirates on June 23, 2023, and made his MLB debut that night at Miami.
Holderman, 28, was placed on the 15-day injured list on Aug. 8 with a right wrist sprain. He began the season on a rehab assignment with Indianapolis and logged a 7.36 ERA (3er/3.2ip) with five strikeouts in four appearances. In 44 appearances with Pittsburgh, he went 3-5 with a 3.43 ERA (16er/42.0ip) and 47 strikeouts. After being traded to Pittsburgh from New York (NL) on July 22, 2022, in exchange for cash, Holderman appeared in three games with Indianapolis and recorded a 3.00 ERA (1er/3.0ip) and four strikeouts. In two appearances at Huntington Park with Triple-A Syracuse in 2022, he allowed one run over 3.1 innings. Holderman was originally selected by New York (NL) in the ninth round (280th overall) of the 2016 First Year Player Draft out of Heartland Community College (Normal, Ill.). He had his contract first selected by the Mets on May 15, 2022, and made his MLB debut that day vs. Seattle.
Mlodzinski, 25, was placed on the 15-day injured list on July 30 with a right shoulder strain. He began the season on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation and went 0-1 with a 6.43 ERA (10er/14.0ip) and 13 strikeouts in 12 total appearances with Indianapolis, the first outing as part of his initial rehab assignment before he was reinstated from the injured list and officially optioned by the Pirates. After being recalled by Pittsburgh on May 15, he went 2-4 with a 3.18 ERA (12er/34.0ip) and 29 strikeouts in 26 big-league outings (three starts). The South Carolina native has appeared in 33 career games with Indy since making his Triple-A debut in 2021, going 2-4 with one save, a 4.22 ERA (20er/42.2ip) and 47 strikeouts. Mlodzinski was selected by Pittsburgh in the first round (31st overall) of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of South Carolina (Columbia). He had his contract selected by Pittsburgh on June 16, 2023, and made his big-league debut that day at Milwaukee.
Taylor University Men’s Lacrosse Announces Fall Prospect Camp on September 21 Taylor University Men’s Lacrosse will host a Prospect Camp on Saturday, September 21 from 9:00 am through 3:00 pm for high school students interested in playing collegiately. The camp will be held at TU’s Wheeler Field and will cost $50 per camper. Individuals will participate in positional skill work during the morning session and a scrimmage in the afternoon. The schedule will also include a question-and-answer session with current TU lacrosse student-athletes and a lunch will be provided. For more information on the camp, please contact TU head coach Chad Newhard at chad_newhard@taylor.edu or 765-998-4749. Online registration and payment in available at TaylorTrojans.com/camps.
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