DiPrimio: ‘A Good Spot’ – No. 3 Indiana Building Crucial Depth
9/2/2025 7:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Here is Indiana, battling to a 3-0-1 soccer start and a No. 3 national ranking against grueling competition, with more elite challenges on the way (see No. 15 Saint Louis Wednesday (Sept. 3) night at Bill Armstrong Stadium), and consider this:
Imagine how good the Hoosiers will be when they get to full strength.
"We have some depth we're starting to figure out," head coach Todd Yeagley says.
Injuries have messed with the lineup, but not the results. IU is scoring and defending at a high level; it thrives when trailing and leading; it rises to challenges, and there have been many early in the season.
Consider that injuries have limited standout defender Josh Maher to 12 minutes, all in the season-opening tie against now No. 3 Clemson, and talented midfielder Charlie Heuer to 72 minutes, again, all against Clemson. Junior forward Clay Murador, a key contributor in the two previous seasons, has yet to play.
A less focused team might have buckled with those limitations against a rigorous early schedule that included Clemson and previous No. 14 Oregon State, but as you'd expect from a traditional powerhouse, Indiana pushed past it.
Besides the unbeaten record, it has outscored its opponents 9-5 and outshot them 60-41.
Seven Hoosiers – senior forward Palmer Ault, junior forwards Collins Oduro and Alex Barger, junior defenders Victor Akoum and Breckin Minzey, freshman forward Colton Swan, and senior midfielder Jack Wagoner – have started all four games. Fourteen players have played at least 156 minutes.
Sophomore midfielder Michael Nesci has come off the bench every game while contributing one goal and one assist. Sophomore forward Easton Bogard has come off the bench every game and contributed a goal.
"We know we have so much talent in the locker room," says Ault, the Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week after scoring the game-winning goal against San Francisco and scoring two goals in Sunday night's 2-0 win over Oregon State, "that no matter what the lineup is – and it could be different from game to game – the team we put out there has a chance to make something special happen against any opponent."
Consider Nesci, who set up Ault's second goal Sunday night.
"He's a great player," Ault says. "He comes off the bench and adds different element to this team. It's the depth we've talked about. He gives us a nice spark. We know what he can do in the final third. He's fantastic at combination play and making things happen."
Consider graduate goalkeeper Holden Brown, who earned Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week honors after helping hold Green Bay and Oregon State scoreless over the final 178 minutes of action. He's 3-0 on the season and one of two elite goalkeepers on the team with freshman Judewellin Michel, the starter against Clemson.
"I'm happy for Holden to get that shutout," Ault says. "I can see a lot more shutouts coming up soon."
Consider senior midfielder Cristiano Bruletti, who previously played at South Carolina and Michigan State. He arrived with 44 starts in 49 career college matches on his resume. He's started three times this season and played all 90 minutes against Oregon State.
"We were able to get Bruletti some really important minutes (against Oregon State)," Yeagley says. "He's been hurt for about a year. He played most of last year hurt, although he trudged through it."
Bruletti needed surgery and spent most of the spring in a boot, but is healthy now. He had a key role in Sunday's shutout.
"This was a sign of what we know he can do for us in midfield," Yeagley says.
As a result, IU is building key midfield depth. The same is true on defense. With Maher sidelined, Akoum and Minzey are "really growing organizationally and also in communication," Yeagley says. Both played all 90 minutes against Oregon State.
"They're forced to (communicate) because Josh is typically the one doing that," Yeagley says. "Now, when Josh is brought back in the fold, both of them will be better for this experience."
The offense should get a boost when Murador returns, Yeagley adds.
"Clay has not played a minute yet, but he was one of our best attackers in preseason. He will be available soon. When he comes back, we should have more options."
Even with reduced options, Indiana's first-half execution against Oregon State was a clinic in what elite soccer can be. The Hoosiers' 1-0 halftime lead could easily have been 3-0.
"We have a little more," Yeagley says. "With what I've seen of this team in training and exhibition, that's the A range of where we want to be against a team I think will win its conference. They could be a deep tournament team.
"In the first half, we did everything. They couldn't do a thing."
IU will seek more strong play against Saint Louis, which is 2-0-1 with three shutouts and its own successful tradition.
The Billikens dominated college soccer from the late 1950s into the mid-1970s, winning 10 national titles, a record that still stands.
"It will be a tough battle," Ault says. "There's a lot of history between these teams. Several national championships. It will be cool to be a part of."
After Saint Louis comes a trip to Notre Dame, another tradition-rich program with a national championship on its resume.
"This is a tough start to the season," Ault says. "We knew these games would take a lot to win, especially early on as we try to jell a lot of new pieces together."
Ault, a Butler transfer, is among those new pieces.
"It's been a great transition to come into an environment where it's all about the team and about winning games.
"These first few games have been far from perfect, but we're all about getting results. That's what we've done so far."
Moving forward, Yeagley says, "I like what we've done in these first four games. The only period I wasn't pleased with was the first 20 minutes against San Francisco.
"I like where we are at this point, but we have not achieved our season goals. We've put ourselves in a good spot. We've tested ourselves. Now we have to get ready for the next one."
