Sunday, February 21
Bloomington, Ind.
1 P.M.
Xavier University
0
at
2
Indiana
Men's Soccer Splits in Spring Action Versus IU, Valpo
02.23.16 | Men's Soccer
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Xavier men's soccer kicked off its spring exhibition slate this past Sunday, traveling Bloomington, Ind. to play a pair of 60-minute matches against Indiana and Valparaiso. The Musketeers fell 2-0 against IU and picked up a 1-0 win against Valpo.Â
"A solid first time out," said head coach Andy Fleming. "The highs in the Indiana game were very high and we carried the tempo and possession at several junctures. IU will tell you we had just three shots, but so did they. Each of their goals were from distance and wonderful strikes. Only in the final three minutes or so of the game did they get full command of things and put the game away. I thought we played pretty well overall and, ironically, played better than we did against Valpo."
Indiana is fresh off a NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance and last played Xavier in the 2014 NCAA tournament – in which Xavier won and advanced to its first-ever NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. The loss dropped Xavier to 5-2 against the Hosiers during the Andy Fleming era.
In the second game, Ian Vicars' header off of a Sam Sergi cross was the difference as Xavier shook off a sluggish start to put away Valparaiso 1-0.
"Ian wants to score goals and literally gets a great look at goal or an actual goal in almost every one of his outings," said Fleming. "It's a great start for a guy who has worked extremely hard the past four months."
In 2015, Valparaiso spent multiple weeks in the NSCAA Top 25 and was 2-0-1 against ranked teams.
Each game consisted of two 30-minute halves with eight field players and a goalkeeper. The field was condensed, playing at 100-by-55 yards.
Transfer freshman Colin Hanley and rising senior Jake Ciricillo split the duties on each of the games in goal. Fleming cited Matt Nance, Todd Pratzner and Jalen Brown as having strong outings for X.
"It was good to play someone else and get a game in this early," said Fleming. "This gives us a fitness barometer, allowed us to monitor minutes and look at some combinations and see two of our January arrivals as well. We now have four weeks to prepare for our toughest spring opponent and a great local event when we host FC Cincinnati in March."
The Musketeer continue their spring schedule on Friday, March 18 in a much-anticipated home match against FC Cincinnati. First touch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET at Xavier Soccer Complex.
"A solid first time out," said head coach Andy Fleming. "The highs in the Indiana game were very high and we carried the tempo and possession at several junctures. IU will tell you we had just three shots, but so did they. Each of their goals were from distance and wonderful strikes. Only in the final three minutes or so of the game did they get full command of things and put the game away. I thought we played pretty well overall and, ironically, played better than we did against Valpo."
Indiana is fresh off a NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance and last played Xavier in the 2014 NCAA tournament – in which Xavier won and advanced to its first-ever NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. The loss dropped Xavier to 5-2 against the Hosiers during the Andy Fleming era.
In the second game, Ian Vicars' header off of a Sam Sergi cross was the difference as Xavier shook off a sluggish start to put away Valparaiso 1-0.
"Ian wants to score goals and literally gets a great look at goal or an actual goal in almost every one of his outings," said Fleming. "It's a great start for a guy who has worked extremely hard the past four months."
In 2015, Valparaiso spent multiple weeks in the NSCAA Top 25 and was 2-0-1 against ranked teams.
Each game consisted of two 30-minute halves with eight field players and a goalkeeper. The field was condensed, playing at 100-by-55 yards.
Transfer freshman Colin Hanley and rising senior Jake Ciricillo split the duties on each of the games in goal. Fleming cited Matt Nance, Todd Pratzner and Jalen Brown as having strong outings for X.
"It was good to play someone else and get a game in this early," said Fleming. "This gives us a fitness barometer, allowed us to monitor minutes and look at some combinations and see two of our January arrivals as well. We now have four weeks to prepare for our toughest spring opponent and a great local event when we host FC Cincinnati in March."
The Musketeer continue their spring schedule on Friday, March 18 in a much-anticipated home match against FC Cincinnati. First touch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET at Xavier Soccer Complex.
Players Mentioned
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