With just two games left in the regular season already out of contention for postseason play, the Michigan women’s soccer team, headed to Indiana to gain momentum for next year.
- Said Alsalah / Daily
But the Wolverines’ inability to score led to a 1-0 loss, their third in a row, this one 1-0. The struggling offense last scored three games ago, in a 3-1 loss against Wisconsin.
The game’s only goal came two minutes into the second half, when Indiana’s Kristin Arnold took a cross and placed a shot from 25 yards into the upper left corner past Wolverine senior goalie Madison Gates.
“Neither team really had a chance where you would say, that was a great chance,” Michigan coach Greg Ryan said. “Their kid was open outside the box, but that is still 25 yards away. She just made a great shot. We had similar types of chances, but we just didn’t hit them straight at the goal.”
One of Michigan’s best chances came near the end of the first half. Senior Katie Miler ran to a ball from the top of the box and uncorked an uncontested shot from 18 yards away, but Hoosier goalie Lindsay Campbell made one of her six saves, stuffing the shot.
The Wolverine offense, which was relatively stagnant in the first half, outshot Indiana 7-1 in the final 40 minutes. Desperate for a goal, Michigan hurled four shots in the last eight minutes.
The victory gave Indiana (3-6-1 Big Ten, 4-10-4 overall) its third straight 1-0 win.
Michigan (1-6-2, 4-10-4) is 2-6 in one-goal games this season. The Wolverines have been left scoreless in four of their last six games.
“We have created enough chances to score goals, but unfortunately, we are not scoring goals,” Ryan said. “We are not hitting the corners. We are hitting the goal keeper, and you’re just not going to score many goals like that.”
Michigan hopes the scoring drought will end before next fall. The Wolverines end their season with a matchup against rival Michigan State in East Lansing. Michigan hasn’t beat the Spartans since 2002.