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Another one up, another one down. On Sunday No. 2 Indiana beat Michigan 3-0 to bring the Big Ten Tournament Championship back to Bloomington.
It didn’t take long for the Hoosiers to get ahead. In the 7th minute Trevor Swartz launched a ball from just outside the box. Michigan goalkeeper Henry Mashburn palmed the ball away and Griffin Dorsey, making his return from a successful stint with the US Youth National Team, put the rebound back toward the net. Again Mashburn made the stop. Finally the ball squeaked toward Cory Thomas who tapped it into the back of the net for the goal.
That score stood until late in the game. As the Wolverines pushed up the field looking for an equalizer, the Hoosiers took advantage. In the 73rd minute Dorsey took on a defender, dribbling toward the goal line on the right side of the box before sending a cross toward the middle of the field. A diving Jeremiah Gutjahr deflected the ball with his head and found the net to extend the lead to 2-0.
Just minutes later it was IU again. Austin Panchot put a ball to the near post and Spencer Glass redirected it past the keeper for the third Hoosier goal of the day.
The return of Dorsey was a huge boost for IU. His two assists were a plus of course, but he also brings an aggressive approach that boosts the Hoosier attack.
It’s two down, one to go for IU. When the season began the Hoosiers had three goals. They’ve won the Big Ten regular season, they’ve won the Big Ten Tournament, and now it’s on to the NCAA Tournament and it seems like they could very well win that too.
One thing that will help them in that effort will be the return of Justin Rennicks. The speedy forward should return to Bloomington soon as his run with the national team should be ending. That should boost the attack even more, returning the Hoosiers to full strength.
The NCAA Selection Show is scheduled for Monday at 1pm. Indiana could very well be the top overall seed in the tourney, as No. 1 Wake Forest lost in overtime against No. 10 Louisville in the ACC Tournament Semifinals. The Hoosiers will kick off their tourney run on Sunday, November 18.