Indiana University Football Opens the Curt Cignetti Era with a win over Florida International
The Indiana Hoosiers opened the 2024 Football season with a 31-7 win over the Florida International Panthers Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington before a crowd of 44,150. New Hoosier Head Coach Curt Cignetti gets his first win in his first game and there are a lot of positives that the Hoosiers can be pleased with going into next Friday Night’s game with Western Illinois at 7pm in Memorial Stadium. The Hoosiers had a balanced attack with 414 total yards of offense with 180 yards through the air and 234 yards on the ground. The Hoosier defense held the Panthers to 182 yards with 129 passing yards and 53 on the ground. The Hoosiers went 4-4 in the red zone, the defense had 4 sacks and 8 tackles for loss and Interception by Amare Farrell.
Quarterback Kurtis Rourke who played the last four years at Ohio University finished 15-24 passing with 180 yards and a touchdown pass. Rourke showed a lot of poise and leadership with his passing and decision making not forcing anything and scrambling to get out of trouble as he ran it 6 times for 3 yards and sacked just twice for 5 total yards as the Hoosiers offensive line that has struggled in the past with quarterback protection did a much better job. The Hoosiers showed a lot more discipline and physicality under Cignetti. The Hoosiers running backs combined for 234 yards on 40 carries with 3 touchdowns with 6 different Hoosiers getting the ball. Ty Son Lawton who came with Cignetti from James Madison had 2 touchdowns on 16 carries with 74 yards rushing. Justice Ellison who transferred from Wake Forest had 10 carries for 68 yards and North Carolina transfer Elijah Green scored a touchdown from 51 yards out late in the 4th quarter had 5 carries for 52 yards. Myles Price had 1 carry for 12 yards and Kaelon Black had 1 carry for 7 yards.
The Indiana receivers combined for 15 catches for 180 yards with a touchdown from Tight End Zach Horton and 7 different players catching the ball and no player got more than four receptions with Myles Price getting 29 yards and he played at Texas Tech last season. Omar Cooper Jr had 3 receptions for 45 yards and his High School Teammate Donaven McCulley had 1 catch for 9 yards and they were the only two returning Hoosiers to touch the ball on offense as the rest were guys who transferred into the program during the offseason. Tight End Zach Horton had 3 receptions for 36 yards and Elijah Sarratt had 2 receptions for 12 yards, as they both played for Cignetti at James Madison. Myles Cross who played Rourke at Ohio had 1 catch for 30 yards and Ellison 1 catch for 19 yards.
The Hoosiers had 23 first downs, ran 65 total plays, 4-10 on third downs, 1-2 on fourth downs and no turnovers. IU controlled time of possession controlling the ball for 32 Minutes and 50 seconds. Aiden Fisher who played at James Madison led the Hoosier defense with 12 total tackles, 4 solo, 2 for loss and one sack. Marcus Burris Jr, Lanell Carr Jr, and Andrew Turvy sacked FIU Quarterback Keyone Jenkins. The Hoosiers had 9 penalties for 80 yards.
Keyone Jenkins was 20-29 passing for 180 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Keion Owens had 5 carries for 36 yards as the Panthers had 7 different players combine 30 carries and 53 yards. Dean Patterson had 5 catches for 28 yards as 8 different receivers got the ball 20 times for 129 yards as Rocky Beers finished with 4 catches for 18 yards and a touchdown. FIU had 13 first downs, 4-13 on third downs, 1-4 on fourth downs, 59 total plays and went 1-1 in the red zone. The Panthers controlled the ball for 27 minutes and 10 seconds and the defense had 2 sacks and 3 tackles for loss.
Indiana led 21-0 as Lawton scored twice and Horton scored on the touchdown pass from Rourke. The Panthers scored right before halftime. Nicolas Radicic kicked a 35-yard field goal with 5:51 left in the tird quarter as he finished the day 4-4 on extra points. Elijah Green capped it off with a 51-yard touchdown run with 1:06 left in the game to put the Hoosiers at 1-0 on the season and improve to 4-0 all time against Florida International. The Hoosiers hosted a non-conference opener for the first time since 2015 winning 12 straight non-conference home opener dating back to the 2000 season when they lost to NC State 41-38. Indiana is now 26-3 in Non-Conference Home Openers since 1953. Western Illinois who the Hoosiers will face Next Friday Night lost at Northern Illinois 54-15.
Tommy Mihalic’s Brace leads Indiana University Men’s Soccer over Yale The Indiana Hoosiers beat the Yale Bulldogs 2-0 Sunday Night at Bill Armstrong Stadium for the first time the programs storied history. In the just third all-time meeting Yale beat the Hoosiers in the previous two meetings which came before any of current players were born and not many teams can claim that they had never lost to the Hoosiers until Sunday Night. Yale won both meetings by 2-1 on scores on November 1, 1991, in New Haven Connecticut in the NCAA Tournament and September 11, 1999, in Providence, Rhode Island.
The Hoosiers are 1-1-1 on the season and travel to in state rival Butler on Wednesday Night while Yale is 0-2 on the season after losing their season opener at home to Marquette 1-0 Friday Night will host UMass on Saturday evening. Indiana is 362-71-56 all time at Bill Armstrong Stadium and since 2016 72-7-14 with 59 shutouts. The Hoosiers have an all-time record 823-199-118 and one of eight programs to have over 800 wins in Men’s Division 1 soccer. This was the 168th consecutive regular season match that the Hoosiers have had without back-to-back losses dating back to 2013. Head Coach Todd Yeagley is 201-74-55 in 16 years as head coach and 194-66-53 in his 15th season at IU.
Tommy Mihalic scored a brace which is two goals and now has three goals on the season through two games after scoring last Thursday night in the Hoosiers 2-2 draw against Notre Dame. Mihalic scored on a penalty kick at the 17:07 mark in the first half and then scored the second goal at the 63:42 mark going bottom left of goal off his left foot with the assist to Samuel Sarver who laid back from the end line to charging Mihalic who found the ball in the middle of two Bulldogs charging at him he was able to put it home.
“Every time Sam has the ball, I know that he is going to beat his guy, and I got to be in the right spot to receive the ball,” Tommy Mihalic said after the game.
Indiana outshot Yale 16-7 with 5-1 shots on goal. Yale Goalkeeper Chris Edwards had three saves while Indiana Goalkeeper JT Harms made 1 save and gets his 15th career shutout at IU. There were 31 combined fouls with Yale committing 20 and 11 for Indiana. The Hoosiers had 7 corner kicks and Yale had 5. Indiana was called for offsides twice and Yale once. “Getting that first goal was huge and big confidence boost for our team since we did not get early chances in the first two games” Indiana Head Coach Todd Yeagley said after the game.
The Hoosiers controlled the possession throughout the match and had a lot of attacks up both sides of the pitch against the Yale defense. Yale Senior Goalkeeper Chris Edwards played every minute of every game between the pipes for Yale and Indiana tested him early and often. Yale picked up a yellow card just one minute and 35 seconds into the match with a yellow card going to Simon Adjakple. Indiana outshot Yale 9-3 with 3-1 in shots on goal. Yale Goalkeeper Chris Edwards made 2 saves while Indiana Goalkeeper JT Harms made 1 save. Both Teams committed 9 fouls apiece.
The Hoosiers had five corner kicks and Yale had 1 and the Hoosiers were called for offsides once in the first half. Indiana controlled the game in the second half as Yale picked up two yellow cards late in the second half Sven Meachem at the 72:50 mark and Ryan Cote at the 79:23 mark both for unsporting. The Hoosiers outshot Yale 7-4 and 2-0 in shots on goal. Chris Edwards made one second half save, and JT Harms did not make a save. Yale had 4 Corner Kicks to two for Indiana. Yale had 11 fouls and Indiana 2 and both teams were called for offsides once in the second half.
Indiana University Women’s Soccer and Brown Battle to a 1-1 Draw
In their first match up in the Ivy League, Indiana women’s soccer battled Brown (0-1-2) to a 1-1 draw at Stevenson-Pincince Field on Sunday evening in Providence Rhode Island. Brown got on the board early with a goal in the sixth minute. Indiana (3-0-1) saw their first couple of opportunities from sophomore midfielder Elle Britt in the 14th and 16th minutes. Her first shot couldn’t get past the keeper as it was scooped up while her second strike was batted away in the high right pocket of the net.
The Hoosiers held the Bears to only one shot on goal the rest of the half that came in the 19th minute. Senior goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg collected one of her three saves on the night. Indiana saw two more chances in the 26th minute from freshman defender Haden Vlcek and the 39th minute from sophomore defender Piper Coffield before heading into the locker room. Junior midfielder Olivia Rush found the equalizer in the 54th minute to tie the match. Senior defender Lauren Costello through the ball into the 18-yard box finding defender Avery Snead who saw an open Rush on the left side corner of the goalie box as she sent it to the left side corner of the net as it went through two Brown defenders.
Britt saw another chance to put the Hoosiers in the lead in the 60th minute but couldn’t get it past the keeper. The Hoosiers continued to bring the heat with a pair of shots on frame from Costello and senior midfielder Hope Paredes. Brown was able to get a shot off in the final minute, but Vlcek made a diving save to hold the Bears off in a draw.
IU remains undefeated through four matches as they improve to 3-0-1 on the season. The Hoosiers led in shots 13-8 and 8-4 in shots on goal. Rush scored her first career goal against the Bears. Britt earned her first start of the season and led the Hoosiers with five shots on goal. IU also led 5-1 in corners. IU will return to Bloomington for two matches against Evansville on Thursday and Lawrence University on Sunday.
Bloomington North Football Wins First Game under New Head Coach Anthony Lindsey
Week 2 of the High Football Season saw Bloomington North shutout Bedford North Lawrence 45-0 to give Head Coach Anthony Lindsey his first career coaching win in his second game in charge. The cougars led 24-0 half and scored 21 in the second half for their first shutout win since September 29, 2023, when they beat Columbus East 45-0 at home.
The Cougars blocked 2 punts, forced a fumble on a third and returned 2 interceptions for touchdowns. Will Breedlove picked up the ball on the blocked punt and returned it 10 yards for the score. Ross Odgen had a fumble return and a pick six. Drew Zurbach had a 42-yard interception for a touchdown Dash King had a 50-yard touchdown run along with a one-yard Shaun Cooper touchdown run and a field goal form Joe Luther. Bloomington North 1-1 will host Terre Haute South on Friday at 7 pm.
Bloomington South lost at Martinsville 41-35. The Panthers led 14-6 after the first quarter with touchdowns from Braylen Townsend and Duncan Combs. Martinsville scored on 18-yard touchdown run from Quarterback A.J. Renyolds as the Artesians missed the two-point conversion. Martinsville scored when Joel Sumner recovered a blocked punt in the endzone to make it 14-13. Hunter Stroud scored on 2-yard touchdown reception to make it 20-14 Martinsville with 3:20 left in the second quarter. Stroud scored his second touchdown reception of the game from 39 yards to make it 27-14 going into the locker room. As Halftime was nearly over at 8:28 pm Friday Night mother nature caused a delay as weather moved into the area and the teams decided to come back Saturday Morning at 11am and pick the game back up starting the second half.
When the game restarted Braylen Townsend scored on a 10-yard run to make it 27-21 Martinsville just 40 seconds into the third quarter. Austin Prior answered for Martinsville with a 2-yard score making 34-21 with 6:48 left in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter Townsend scored his third TD of the game as Bloomington South cut the lead to 34-28 with 10:41 left. Townsend punched it in form 1 yard out with 44 seconds left to give the Panthers a 35-34 lead. After Luke Arnett blew up the Artesians play at their own 20. Mason Dodson caught a 42 yarder down to the Bloomington South 32 Martinsville got to the eight-yard line with 22.8 seconds left and Austin Prior scored from 8 yards out with 18.8 seconds left to give Martinsville the win as the Panthers could not move the ball in the final seconds after an illegal hook and ladder play along with a sack. Bloomington South is 1-1 on the season and will host Terre Haute North Friday at 7pm.
Edgewood was leading 3-0 on the red carpet in Ellettsville Friday night when their game with Washington was called due to lightning. Edgewood led 3-0 at halftime when the game picked up at 6 pm Saturday evening. Washington scored on a touchdown pass and two-point conversion to make it 8-3 with 2:24 left in the third quarter. Washington opened the fourth quarter with a reverse that was a halfback pass to make it 15-3 just 11 seconds into the fourth. The Hatchets added a 42-yard touchdown run with 9:43 to go to make it 22-3 and that was the final score. Edgewood falls to 1-1 on the season and will host Cascade on Friday Night at 7pm.
Cailtin Clark scores a career high 31 Points as the Indiana Fever beat the Chicago Sky
The Indiana Fever (16-16) closed its regular-season series with the Chicago Sky in a dominant 100-81 victory at Wintrust Arena on Friday night. Indiana scored a season-high 100 points and improved its record to .500 or better in the month of August or later for the first time since the 2016 season. Fever Rookie Guard Caitlin Clark scored a career-high 31 points on 8-of-14 shooting, 5-of-9 from 3-point range and went 10-of-11 from the free throw line in the third win of the season against the Sky.
Clark also dished out 12 assists for her 11th double-double of the season and passed Ticha Penicheiro for the most games by a rookie in WNBA history to record at least 10 assists with nine. Clark enters Sunday needing only six points to secure the most points ever scored by a Fever rookie trailing only Tamika Catchings’ 594 points.
Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell followed with 23 points on 9-of-13 field goal shooting and 3-of-5 shooting from 3-point range. Friday extended Mitchell’s franchise record to six-consecutive games scoring at least 20 points and also moved her to a tie with Renee Montgomery for 15th on the WNBA all-time 3-point field goals made list with 532. Fever forward NaLyssa Smith added 14 points, 11 of which came in the third quarter alone, to go along with seven rebounds in the win, which moved her past Teaira McCowan for fifth on the Fever all-time rebounds list with 777.
Fever Guard Lexie Hull earned her third start of the season Friday night as she recorded 11 points, which included three made 3-point field goals. Fever reserve forward Damiris Dantas and center Aliyah Boston combined for 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two blocks in the win as well. Former Indiana University Star Grace Berger played 3 minutes and went 0-1 from three-point range.
Indiana led the entire second half and built the advantage to as much as 27 points toward the end of the game. Chicago started the game on a 21-9 run, sparked by Lindsay Allen’s back-to-back 3-point field goals. Indiana responded with a 12-2 run of its own to end the quarter and cut the early deficit down to three going into the second quarter. Clark opened up the second quarter with back-to-back 3-point field goals and Indiana ended the first half leading, 47-42. The Fever scored 31 points in the third quarter, which was the highest scoring third quarter for the Fever this season, to begin pulling away from Chicago.
Chicago’s (11-20) losing streak extended to five games on Friday, which marks its longest losing streak of the season. Sky forward Michaela Onyenwere led Chicago with a season-high 20 points and six rebounds and Allen trailed with a season-high 19 points, six assists and four rebounds. Sky guard Rachel Banham tallied 14 points, four rebounds and four assists. Sky rookie forward Angel Reese ended with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Mitchell, Indiana Native Chase Briscoe Wins the Southern 500
Mitchell, Indiana Native Chase Briscoe went three-wide to pass Kyle Larson and Ross Chastain for the lead, then outran two-time series champion Kyle Busch to win the Southern 500 on Sunday night and make the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Briscoe pulled away on a final restart with 17 laps in the regular-season finale at Darlington Raceway and held off Busch, who like Briscoe needed a victory to reach the postseason. “We just won the Southern 500!” an emotional Briscoe said on the car radio. Briscoe’s Stewart-Haas Team announced its closure earlier this season. Briscoe gave the proud program something to fight for over the final 10 weeks of the season.
Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Ty Gibbs and Martin Truex Jr. got the final two postseason spots on points, while Bubba Wallace and Chastain, both within 27 points of the cutoff line when the race began, came up short. Briscoe’s dramatic move spoiled another dominant Darlington run by Kyle Larson, who led 263 laps but was not the same after getting passed by the winner. Larson was trying to overtake Tyler Reddick for the regular-season points title — and the 15 bonus points the leader receives — but came up a point short. Christopher Bell was third, followed by Larson, Chastain, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Corey LaJoie, and Reddick.
Truex, racing his last season before retirement, just needed a solid, problem-free run at the track “Too Tough to Tame” to advance. Instead, he left his fate in others’ hands when he crashed out on Lap 3 as his car slid up and hit defending NASCAR champion Ryan Blaney. But following Larson’s victory in the second stage — he also won the first stage — NASCAR announced that Truex had wrapped up a spot in the 16-driver playoff field. Bubba Wallace entered the weekend as the first man out of the playoffs and got a boost when he won his first Darlington pole Saturday. But with 23XI co-owner Michael Jordan in his pit box to watch, Wallace got caught up in a six-car wreck 24 laps from the finish Jordan, wearing a headset and watching intently, threw his hands up and bowed his head when he saw Wallace involved in the wreck.
Busch came up short a second straight week, losing to a fellow winless driver this season. He was beaten by Harrison Burton last week at Daytona. Reddick won the regular-season title, with Larson in second. The rest of the playoff field is: Chase Elliott, followed by Christopher Bell, William Byron, Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Austin Cindric, Daniel Suarez, Alex Bowman, Briscoe, Gibbs and Truex. The playoffs start next week at Atlanta on Sunday, with the first round continuing at Watkins Glen and Bristol the following two weeks.
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