10/21/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Latchem notches seven saves as Buckeyes shut out Hoosiers for only second time in 47-game series history
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. It was not a win, but it was still an impressive result for the 23rd-ranked Ohio State men’s soccer team, which played to a 0-0 draw at 10th-ranked Indiana Sunday in Bloomington on Jerry Yeagley Field at Armstrong Stadium. It marked only the second shutout for Ohio State in the 47-game history of the series and after losing at Indiana 19-consecutive times, the Buckeyes have now tied the Hoosiers in their last two trips to Bloomington.
Upping its unbeaten streak to five games (4-0-1), Ohio State moves to 9-3-3 overall and 2-1-1 in the Big Ten, while Indiana is 9-4-2 and sees its perfect Big Ten record slip to 3-0-1. The tie will only help the Buckeyes’ RPI, which was No. 13 entering the game, while seven-time national champion Indiana’s RPI was No. 9.
Both teams had scoring opportunities Indiana had 18 shots and Ohio State 13 but the goalkeeping of Indiana’s Chay Cain and Ohio State tri-captain Casey Latchem was stellar. Latchem tied a season high with seven saves, including five diving stops and a sliding kick save in the closing seconds of the second overtime.
“It was a great defensive effort today and I think Casey Latchem turned in his best game of the season,” John Bluem, Ohio State head coach, said. “He made a lot of very good saves and handled all the situations very cleanly. It was a very even game and there were certainly good chances both directions. It’s a good result for us today. We’re disappointed to not be able to get a result and win the game, but on the other hand, any time you come to Indiana and shut them out and walk away with the tie, that’s a good result and I thought our team played very well today.”
The shutout for Latchem was his seventh of the season, which is tied for most in the Big Ten, and his 19 career shutouts move him into a tie for second-place all-time at Ohio State.
“We had a good feeling about this game,” Latchem said. “We were in tune and came out strong. It was a great game and we battled so hard. We wanted a win, but at the same time, to tie Indiana at Indiana isn’t bad. I felt good and had a good save early, which is something a goalkeeper always wants to do. Everything went well and you can’t ask for anything more than a shutout.”
Sunday marked the first time the Hoosiers had been shut out in a regular-season game since Oct. 20 of last season, a string of 18 games.
“Indiana had some pretty clean opportunities and Casey was in the right place and able to react,” Bluem said. “His positioning was very good and that allowed him to make the saves. Their chances were also limited by the outstanding play of our back four today. They all had very good games, especially Eric Brunner and Doug Verhoff in central defense.”
Cain had three saves for Indiana one of which was a diving stop of a Tim Gabel blast in the 40th minute but otherwise the Buckeyes’ best scoring chances resulted in shots that went just wide or high.
Latchem had five saves in the first half, including diving stops in the 10th, 17th and 37th minutes, and the Ohio State defense helped him withstand a free kick from only 9 yards out in the 30th minute. The free kick came after Latchem was whistled for illegal touching when he grabbed the ball after it was last kicked by an OSU player.
In the 11th minute, Ohio State senior Xavier Balc sent a line-drive free kick from 40 yards that Cain punched over the cross bar, and Balc’s resulting corner kick was deflected around the penalty area that eventually came to the feet of OSU sophomore Doug Verhoff, whose shot from 8 yards away was high.
Both teams got defensive as regulation time ended, but the Buckeyes still had one more scoring chance in the 97th minute when Balc fed a charging Roger Espinoza on a counter attack, but his low shot was just wide left.
Ohio State has a week to prepare for its next game, which will mark the final home of the regular season for the Buckeyes when they host Michigan at 4 p.m. next Saturday. The match will be televised live by the Big Ten Network.
Postgame Notes: No. 23 Ohio State 0, No. 10 Indiana 0
– Ohio State and Indiana met for the 47th time on the soccer field Sunday and the Buckeyes have now shut out the Hoosiers twice. The first time was a 1-0 win for Ohio State in Columbus in the semifinals of the 200 Big Ten Championship.
– Senior goalkeeper Casey Latchem notched his 19th career shutout Sunday to move into a tie for second-place all-time at Ohio State with Dave Scheer, who had 19 shutouts from 1985-88. Kerry Thompson holds the OSU shutouts record with 23.5 from 1997-01.
– The Big Ten Network televised the OSU-IU match Sunday, marking the Buckeyes’ league-most third appearance on the channel this season.
– Ohio State is now 2-2-1 against ranked teams this season, while Indiana moves to 5-2-2.
– Ohio State is now 0-1-3 in overtime games this season, while Indiana is now 1-1-2.
– Indiana outshot Ohio State 18-13 Sunday, becoming only the third team this season to outshoot the Buckeyes, who lead the Big Ten in shots (17.5 per game).
– The Buckeyes are now 0-19-2 all-time in Armstrong Stadium and 2-43-2 all-time against the Hoosiers overall. However, 13 of the last 17 matches in the series have been decided by one goal or ended tied.
– Did You Know: Indiana has won seven national championships, including the last College Cup that was hosted in Columbus Crew Stadium in 2003.
– Indiana has eight starters back from its 2006 team that went 15-4-3, won the Big Ten and made its 20th-consecutive NCAA tournament appearance.
Soccer Game Summary (Final)
2007 Ohio State Men’s Soccer
#23 Ohio State vs #12 Indiana (Oct 21, 2007 at Bloomington, Ind.)
Ohio State (9-3-3, 2-1-1) vs. Indiana (9-4-2, 3-0-1)
Date: Oct 21, 2007 Attendance: 2177
Weather: Sunny, Windy
Goals by period 1 2 OT O2 Tot
————————————-
Ohio State………. 0 0 0 0 – 0
Indiana…………. 0 0 0 0 – 0
SCORING SUMMARY:
Shots: Ohio State 13, Indiana 18
Saves: Ohio State 7 (Latchem, Casey 7), Indiana 3 (Cain, Chay 3)
### OhioStateBuckeyes.com ###
Contact: Tim Stried, stried.3@osu.edu
