The University of Akron Athletics
Zips Fall, 1-0 in Overtime at No. 5 Indiana
November 03 | Men's Soccer
Nov. 3, 2005
Box Score
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- - Indiana senior Brian Plotkin recovered from a miss-hit ball to roll in the game-winner nearly five minutes into the first overtime period as No. 5 Indiana posted a 1-0 victory over No. 1 Akron Thursday night in front of a crowd of 4,884 at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington, Ind.
With the loss, Akron ends the regular season with a 16-1-1 record. Indiana improves to 11-1-6 on the year.
"I thought it was a good experience for us tonight," said UA head coach Ken Lolla. "This atmosphere replicated what we will be facing in the NCAA Tournament, and now we need to grow from this experience and move forward."
Indiana dominated the offensive chances, taking 17 shots to just five for Akron. As has been the case all season, it was Akron's defense that stepped up throughout the game to keep the Hoosiers out of the net in regulation. The Zips were playing without leading scorer Ross McKenzie (cautions) and starting defender Corey Sipos (injury).
"I have mixed emotions," said freshman defender Ossie Michalsen, who turned in another solid performance for Akron along the back line. "This was not our sharpest day, but we gave our whole heart out there. All the credit to Indiana; they are the best team we have faced this year. We have a long way to go until the end of our season, and by no means have we lost our faith."
It was an uneventful offensive display in a scoreless first half
as the Hoosiers held a marginal 3-2 advantage in shots taken.
Indiana's first shot 14 minutes in was easily collected by Evan
Bush (Concord, Ohio/Lake Catholic) in goal. Matthew Tutich
(Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central) took first shot for Akron with
29:00 remaining in the half, a slow roller scooped up by IU
goalkeeper Chris Munroe. A shot from Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Mentor,
Ohio/Mentor/UIC) was stopped by a charging Munroe, as forward Geir
Nyheim (Bergen, Norway/U. Pihl) was unable to get to the ball in
time for a second attempt.
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With 29:29 remaining in regulation, IU's Josh Tudela had a chance at the net as Bush came off his mark, but his shot flew wide as the game remained scoreless. A high shot by Steve Kalan (Highland Heights, Ohio/Mayfield) was met with a leaping save from Munroe at 20:02. Lee Nguyen's free kick at 75:00 glanced off the top of the cross bar and out of play.
With just over five minutes remaining in the second half, Nguyen had a one-on-one with Bush, but Michalsen came screaming in and kicked the ball out of play to save a score. As time wound down in regulation, a shot by Mike Ambersley was saved by a sliding Bush who cleared the ball with his foot for his sixth save of the night.
Sadler's shot up and over the net at 87:30 was just the fourth shot of the night for the Zips, and just the second in the second half of play. Indiana ended regulation with a 16-5 advantage in shots taken, with six of those attempts on goal. Three of Akron's five shots resulted in saves by Munroe.
The Zips are back in action this Friday as they play host to the semifinal rounds of the Mid-American Conference Tournament. No. 2 Northern Illinois will face either No. 3 Buffalo or No. 6 IPFW at 5 p.m. That game is followed by No. 1 Akron taking on either No. 4 Western Michigan or No. 5 Bowling Green in a 7:30 p.m. match. Tickets for the tournament are $6 for adults, $4 for children and $3 for students with ID.
