One step closer: IU advances after 1-0 victory over Pittsburgh
Indiana is now one step closer.
No. 3 IU took down No. 2 Pittsburgh 1-0 in the semifinals on Friday night to advance to its 16th National Championship match in program history.
Like the quarterfinals, Indiana ended the match having been outshot by its opponent. Despite being outshot by a factor of 2-1, both teams shared two shots on goal. One of those went into the back of the net for the Hoosiers in the second half.
There were many close chances for Pitt to score throughout the match, but IU's defense, who has only given up five goals the entire season, was resilient and did not concede a goal.
IU had a chance to capitalize on an early mistake by Pitt's defensive line in the 6th minute. A Pitt defender had trouble handling an incoming cross and the ball went toward IU forward Thomas Warr. Warr fired a shot, but it was subsequently blocked and went out of bounds for a corner. Pitt then cleared the corner to prevent further damage.
In the 26th minute, Pitt forward Bertin Jacquesson received a pass on the right-wing in transition and shot toward the box. IU defender Nyk Sessock safely cleared it away, but the shot was dangerously close to becoming an own goal.
Pitt midfielder Filip Mirkovic played a through ball to forward Veljko Petkovic in the 41st minute, and although Petkovic maneuvered past IU's defensive line, his shot sailed high over the crossbar.
Three minutes later, Pitt forward Valentin Noel headed an incoming cross towards the goal, but IU goalkeeper Roman Celentano dove to his left with an impressive save to keep the match tied.
Pitt's offense maintained pressure in the second half and, once again, came close to scoring. Mirkovic fired a shot from outside the box that hit the crossbar in the 58th minute. The ball went downwards on impact and came close to crossing the goal line, so the referee signaled for a review but ruled the ball did not wholly cross the line to keep the match tied 0-0.
But IU forward Herbert Endeley broke the scoreless tie in the 79th minute after he dribbled on the right-wing, cut inside while splitting two defenders and then hurled a shot over Pitt's keeper for the go-ahead goal to give IU a 1-0 lead.
Endeley talked about his go-ahead goal after the game.
"I knew that it could possibly just take one shot for us to win the game. I knew I was feeling it this game,” Endeley said. “I just tried to split two defenders and the finishing that we've been working on in practice and all the small details. I think ultimately, those added up today and helped us win the game."
Endeley has come up big in both meetings between IU and Pitt. When the two teams last met in 2019, Endeley scored the golden goal in double overtime to win it for the Hoosiers 3-2. In this match, he scored the winner to propel the Hoosiers into the championship match.
Pitt had two more shots after Endeley's goal but came up short in obtaining the equalizer.
IU head coach Todd Yeagley talked about how having a reasonably large fanbase in the stadium provided vital energy.
"Our team has been starving for that and IU fans are the best," Yeagley said. "You look through the years of college soccer we travel; no matter where the College Cup is, you're gonna see IU fans if we're there and obviously, we've been there quite a bit. That, I felt, was the X factor today. In the first half, in a couple of moments, we were getting a bit tired and kept pushing and the crowd was a big part of that."
IU won the match 1-0 and will face Marshall in the National Championship match. Kickoff is scheduled for Monday, May 17, at 8:00 p.m. ET and will be available to watch on ESPN2.
----
• Talk about it inside The Hoops Forum or The Football Forum
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Follow us on Twitter: @IndianaRivals
• Like us on Facebook.