Indiana Soccer Pauses Big Ten Slate, Hosts Butler Tuesday

Following Indiana's 0-0 draw in the Big Ten opener, the Hoosiers host Butler Tuesday night, which recently beat Villanova for its first win. Indiana's backline, which has only allowed three goals, will clash with Palmer Ault, who has scored all four of Butler's goals.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — No. 23 Indiana and Butler will briefly pause their conference schedules Tuesday night and meet at Bill Armstrong Stadium. 

Last Friday, the Hoosiers tied 0-0 to Wisconsin at home to begin Big Ten play, the third shutout for Indiana's attack in four matches. The Bulldogs beat Villanova on the road, 2-1, that Friday to start Big East play.

Preceding the Villanova win, which was Butler's first this season, the Bulldogs dropped matches at then-No. 24 Saint Louis 2-1, and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 3-1. Butler tied 0-0 at Western Michigan, then was blanked in its home opener versus Ohio State. In the past three games, Butler has scored and conceded two goals; similar to Indiana's 1:1 ratio in that span.

Each program has scored only four goals this season. Indiana has more than doubled Butler in shots 96-46 and has more on target, 32-20. Butler, however, has the better shots-on-goal percentage of 43%, compared to Indiana's 33%. Keeping shots within the frame, which can lead to rebound goals, has been underlined lately by Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley.

Butler sophomore forward Palmer Ault, the 2023 Preseason Big East Offensive Player of the Year, has scored all of the team's goals, including both in the most recent Villanova victory. Last year, Ault made 19 starts, scored 10 goals, and was named the Big East Freshman of the Year. One of those starts was versus the Hoosiers at home, an Indiana 2-1 come-from-behind win.

On Tuesday night, Ault will encounter an Indiana backline that has conceded just three goals in six matches, making it top-10 in goals against nationally. Two matches ago, on the road at South Florida, Hoosier goalie JT Harms made a career-high seven saves in the 1-0 shutout defeat. For Butler, redshirt senior goalkeeper Caleb Norris has made 33 saves in only five matches.

Last match versus Wisconsin, Yeagley adjusted the starters for the first time in the regular season. Senior center back Jansen Miller was substituted for everyday senior starter Hugo Bacharach. Yeagley kept the same personnel for the four-player attack, but changed their positions. Freshman Collins Oduro and junior Tommy Mihalic were the outside midfielders, while junior Sam Sarver and fifth-year senior Maouloune Goumballe were the two forwards.

Yeagley said he was looking for the right combination to produce goals. It will be interesting to see if the starting positions change again on Tuesday. Though it's only been two matches, the Hoosiers last scored about two weeks ago. Despite leading nine Big Ten teams in total shots, they're last in goals scored and first in fewest goals allowed.

"Just continuing to work on the videos to see where we're disconnected at times and build their confidence," Yeagley said after the Wisconsin match regarding improvements for Tuesday. "As they get a little frustrated, they got to continue to do and play to their strengths. I think at times we're not setting our teammates up for their strengths. We got to find those moments. Find the matchup advantages that we have and [Friday] was just a little late, just our spacing."

The Indiana-Butler match will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET at Bill Armstrong Stadium on Tuesday night and will air on Big Ten-plus. The Hoosiers haven't lost to the Bulldogs at home since 2010.

Related stories on Indiana Soccer: 

• INDIANA ALTERS ATTACK, DRAWS TO WISCO: Indiana hosted Wisconsin in their Big Ten opener and tied 0-0. Yeagley changed the positions of starting players in the attack, hoping to find the best combination to score goals. CLICK HERE
• ATTACK PRODUCTION ON PACE WITH 2022, WHERE ARE THE GOALS?: The Hoosiers, now 2-2-1, are averaging fewer than one goal per match, yet are on pace to match or surpass last year's attack numbers in shots and shots on target. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA SOCCER BLANKS SETON HALL: Indiana followed up Friday's shutout loss to No. 22 Washington by beating Seton Hall Monday night, 1-0. As the Hoosiers outshot the Pirates 14-4, Sam Sarver's goal seemed more than just relief. CLICK HERE
• JT HARMS FEATURE: JT Harms dove into goalkeeping at 9 years old. He trained with far older players at academies, but his progress stalled at Duke. At Indiana, a position battle brought humility — and confidence. CLICK HERE