Terps Go On Road for Heavyweight Matchup vs. Indiana
8/17/2006 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Aug. 17, 2006
College Park, Md. - It may be regarded as only a preseason exhibition to some when Maryland faces Indiana Friday at 8 p.m. in Ft. Wayne, but soccer aficionados know better.
Much better.
The heavyweight matchup between the Terps and Hoosiers, the featured bout on a multi-level, three-day soccer card at the IPFW Soccer Showcase, not only pits institutions that have accounted for the past three NCAA titles, but the contest also features the winningest Division I men's soccer program over the past four years (Maryland) and the winningest Division I men's soccer program of all-time (Indiana).
Hosted by Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, this weekend's seventh annual festival showcases top men's and women's programs at the youth, prep and collegiate levels. This is Maryland's first appearance in the event.
When it comes to Maryland and Indiana, few programs compare. The Terps have reached the NCAA semifinals four consecutive years (2002-2005) and have advanced to postseason play 11 of the past 12 seasons; the Hoosiers bring a nation-best streak of 20 consecutive NCAA tournament showings into the 2006 campaign, and their seven national titles (the last coming in 2003 and 2004) rank second in Division I. Both schools rank among the nation's annual attendance leaders.
"This is a great matchup between two model soccer programs," says Maryland head coach Sasho Cirovski, looking ahead to the clash with Indiana. "We both have great respect for each other. When I think of Indiana, I think of their great history. They helped set the standard for collegiate soccer."
Under Cirovski, Maryland continues setting a national standard of its own, including preseason No. 1 rankings recently released by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and College Soccer News. But even Cirovski, who has led Maryland to an NCAA-best 76 wins since 2002, knows his club has work to do in order to justify such lofty rankings. The 14-year Terrapin coach cautions followers that his 2006 team, which played to a scoreless draw with Georgetown last Friday despite dominating the exhibition match, is working in at least seven new regulars to the starting lineup.
"We've made some progress since camp started, though we're not where I want us to be. But we're moving in the right direction," says Cirovski. "Against Indiana I would like to see some growth in our team compared to our match vs. Georgetown. I would like to see us more connected defensively, as well as more coordinated and aggressive in our attack. We'll look at different people in different places."
Indiana, the all-time Division I leader in NCAA wins but coming off a rare loss in its NCAA playoff opener vs. Notre Dame, is ranked 12th by the NSCAA and 13th by College Soccer News. Like Maryland, IU is also dealing with some significant personnel losses (six starters are gone) and will rely on a back line that is anchored by its keeper.
"Indiana is similar to us," Cirovski says. "They, too, have some significant losses, but they also have some key veterans and some great incoming recruits. That is very much like our situation. We both scheduled this preseason game so we could come out of the contest with a good gauge of where our teams stand heading into the regular season."
The two programs met in an epic battle at Ludwig Field last year, with the teams battling to a 3-3 draw through two overtimes. In a match played before a Ludwig Field record crowd of more than 6,200, Indiana rallied to earn a tie after falling behind 3-0 at the half.. Two seasons ago Indiana edged the Terps 3-2 in the NCAA semifinals, netting the game-winning goal with 48 seconds left in the second extra session.
"Last year our match with Indiana was the best in all of college soccer," Cirovski says. "It was an electric atmosphere, and both teams attacked from the outset. It was everything you want college soccer to be - a challenging matchup, plenty of drama, great goals. This weekend's game will also be played before a huge crowd; it has all the making of being an exciting, open game."
